Lost Memories: Passing Days
by LoveBuildsHate
Summary: I've been having strange dreams recently... in which I see the little me happily living in this world. But... why can't I remember? Why can't I remember those moments of joy? JinxAmy
1. Prophecy of an Unfulfilled Dream

Good day to all of you Grand Chase fan fiction readers! I have a story which I want to share to all of you.

I hope you'll like it but, it's okay if you don't. This is my first fan fiction.

I accept any kind of review, even criticisms.

This story I'm going to create is kind of life-like so there probably won't be any supernatural stuff, and just to warn you, there will be so many made up characters and out of character thingy.

I really don't know much in schools in other countries since I'm from Philippines and we don't have middle school, but 4 years of high school, still, maybe I'll try to go with 2nd year middle school and make them ALL to be 14, please correct me if I'm wrong.

Anyways, hope you like it.

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS.

_ITALIC – THOUGHTS_

**BOLD – FLASHBACKS**

Chapter 1: Prophecy of an Unfulfilled Dream

Someone's POV 6:00 A.M.

I watched as the sun replace the dawn and cover our land with mesmerizing light as I lay down on my house' rooftop, with my hands at the back of my head to support it. My right leg bent upwards to make me more comfortable.

I continued to stare at it. I wasn't really staring at the sun, just beside it so I can at least admire its beauty without going blind. The sun, then, reflected from my fiery, red eyes, creating a sun-like figure in my pupil.

I then moved my eyes to look at the clear, blue sky. Flocks of birds flapped their wings and flew to the direction of my new school.

'_School huh? I wonder who my classmates will be. I hope they're strong. Although I do miss my old classmates a little…'_ I thought with a small frown forming in my face, but smirked after when I excitedly thought about what the new challenges will be.

My hair swayed from the cold breeze. I felt it lightly touch my skin as I closed my eyes to relax myself and take a little rest.

I felt myself adjust to it as I dozed off to a deep slumber.

I still felt the wind on my skin, when suddenly, my head ached and I groaned from my sleep. I could still feel my head hurting pretty bad. I think I turned over from my sleep to rid off the pain. It hurt. I felt like a brick just fell on my head. I felt like an elephant was crushing it.

I kept moaning and moaning, hoping to ease my head, when all of a sudden, I felt like time stopped as I saw a picture emerge in my head. But, the only problem is, that I'm asleep so I couldn't be able to see this right? _'Am I having a dream?'_ I asked myself, also noticing the fact that the pain from my head had disappeared in the blink of an eye.

**In the dream**

'_**Huh? Who is that?'**_ **I wondered as I saw a little pink-haired girl with curled twin tails, wearing a purple tank top and sky blue shorts, pick up flowers from the field and sniff it a little, then smiled. Her pale skin seemed as if it's almost glistening from the blazing sun's rays. She's positioned about 20 meters away from me.**

**I looked around and noticed that I'm standing in the middle of a field, with different flowers and trees. My head ached again and I fell down. Then, as if something clicked in my brain, it disappeared. I looked at my surroundings and felt like I have been here before.**

'_**Why**__… _the trees surrounding the field_** Does this**__… _the trees' green leaves swaying smoothly back and forth from the gentle wind_** Look… **_the beautiful flowers covering the field like, roses, cannas, lantana, and the like, adding to it's peaceful yet majestic beauty_** Familiar…?'**_ **This feels like I know it… like it already happened…** _**'Have I… **_the girl picking up a white flower and tucking it behind her ear_** seen this… **_she stood up and twirled around the flowers, closing her eyes and letting her body go with the rhythm_** before?' **_**Is this some kind of prophecy? **

**I just stood there and watched her dance with her arms relaxed as they just followed the direction of her twirl. I couldn't help but smile at her of how a little girl could dance so beautiful. She then lay down at a patch of white flowers and spread her arms and legs with her face lit up and her eyes closed. A bunch of squirrel came running beside her. She seemed to notice this as she nodded, but she didn't seem to move. Flocks of birds then came, flying beside and above her. A bird landed on her nose. She also noticed this as she opened one of her eye and giggled, then closed it again.**

'**_Like… wow…' _I felt amazed at how it's so peaceful here. I still have the feeling that I have been here. But, I don't know when.**

"**Found you!" I heard a shout from the distance. There were three other girls and they ran up to the little girl as fast as they could. The little girl looked terrified and the animals with her ran away. I tried to hear what they were talking about, but they were a little bit far away, and I don't have time to listen to little kid's talk.**

'**_I don't have time to stand around in here; I have to think of a reason of why I'm having this dream! _I ruffled my hair in panic and tried to concentrate of why this is happening (or maybe why I'm having this dream) but failed miserably. _'Come on! Think! Why else would you be here?_ _Is something related to this going to happen? Come on stupid brain! Work!' _I screamed at my thoughts in panic. After all, I really need to get out of here. If only I'm as smart as my distant best friend…**

"**Aaah!" I heard a light wail and immediately snapped out of my thoughts. It was the little girl. I completely forgot about her. I noticed that she was being bullied by three other girls about the same age as her as they surrounded her, preventing her escape. How did they even get here? Oh yeah, they were the ones who approached her a few seconds ago… "You stupid girl!" A girl with brown, shoulder-length hair with onyx eyes, wearing a blue tank top and blue skirt, shouted at her with an angry face as she kicked the poor girl at her stomach, making the pink-haired girl fall to the ground. I noticed the little girl looked really hurt as her body was shaking as she tried to get back up, but failed when another girl with blonde, midway-length hair with emerald eyes, wearing a white t-shirt and black shorts, slap her hard that the sound was almost heard throughout the field. The little girl flinched at the pain and was about to fall back down again when she was grabbed by the blonde on her hair, she winced at this and tried to get out from her grip, but failed. "You stole my crush just because you're pretty and good at dancing!" Complaining, she continued, "Well, you're not 'cause you're ugly and you SUCK!" The blonde proclaimed to her at very high pitch that the little girl used her hands to cover her ears. The other girl though, with black hair reaching up to her waist and cerulean eyes, wearing a baggy t-shirt and loose pants, just looked at her with cold eyes, then ignored her and looked away sternly. _'Huh? This girl, she looks familiar...'_ I thought before I realized that I have to help her.**

**I couldn't bear it anymore, my knuckles were turning white, but I don't know why. Sure, I don't like seeing someone get bullied, but I wouldn't get this angry, you know?**

**The next thing I know was that I was running toward them and shouting, "Hey, stop that!" They seem to not hear me as they kept hurting the girl.**

**I reached them and immediately said as I stopped, "Hey, the power to fight isn't meant for hurting, it's for-", I told them with a serious face and tried to pat the blonde girl on her shoulder who was grabbing the little girl's hair. I gave a sad smile and closed my eyes as my hand almost reached the girl's shoulder.**

**The only weird thing is why does it seem like my hand is still trying to reach her shoulder? I opened my eyes and it widened as I gaped. My hand is passing through her back!**

"**Woah!" I withdrew my hand at incredible speed and looked at my hand._ 'What the h*l* just happened?'_ I slowly turned my head to look at them incredulously. I slowly walked over to them, cautious. Then, I waved my hand in front of each of their faces. It looks like I don't even exist.**

'_**What in the world is going on? Wait… this is a dream right? ...So, it makes sense…' **_

"**Hey, stop that!" I snapped out of my thoughts and reverie as I saw a boy shout from a distance. He had flaming, red hair and fiery, red eyes. He was wearing a sleeveless shirt and a short with fiery patterns on it. _'Huh? This boy… he looks familiar too…'_ **

**He ran toward us. The blonde and brown-haired girl looked at him with their cold, piercing eyes, while the black-haired girl just ignored him. **

**He reached us and pats the blonde's shoulder. "Hey, the power to fight isn't meant for hurting, it's for us to protect the ones that we cherish." "That… that phrase… but… it can't be…" I mumbled to myself. Just what is this dream? He smiled at them, but it doesn't seem like it got through the blonde girl as she still looked at him with cold eyes. The brown-haired girl though, looked surprised and frightened at the same time. The black-haired girl looked at him with interest, and then she walked away.**

"**HA, HA, HA" The blonde said with a very sarcastic tone. She's not really laughing is she? She slapped the boy's hand away from her and rubbed it on her clothes, like her action was saying the word GROSS. She also let go of the little girl who fell to the ground and whimpered. **

"**Like I care about your pathetic quote. Who are you to say that to me anyway Mr. Genius? Hmmm?" She said while swaying her hips and looking at him with a sickly, sweet smile. **

**The boy's smile faltered and he looked at her with a calm face.**

"**E-Ella… w-we s-s-should… g-go…" The brown-haired girl suggested while terribly stuttering and terrified.**

"**What are you saying, you _coward_?" She turned her head towards her and noted out to her _friend_ while emphasizing the word coward.**

**"B-but! It's him Ella! The boy who beat up the thieves by himself!" The brown-haired girl replied back to her in panic. _'Huh? This little boy did that?'_**

**"What are you talking about, idiot? There's no way that it was him-"**

"**Get. Out. Now." They were interrupted by a dark voice from behind. (I still think she doesn't believe what her friend said.) The boy's warning tone finally went through the blonde girl. She slowly turned to look at him and froze as she saw him glaring at her while gritting his teeth.**

"**Y-you'll regret this!" She said as she and her friend immediately stumbled off.**

**He watched their backs as they were running. He dismissed the thought of this and glanced at the crying girl who had her face covered with her hands as she was whimpering.**

**He walked towards her. He closed in their distance and reached for his pocket. He took out a red handkerchief and held it out to her. "Here." He offered while wearing a warm smile on his face. The girl stopped for a second and looked at it. She then looked at the boy with confusing eyes, but gladly took the handkerchief. She used it to wipe her tears and clean her face. **

**The boy sat down next to her in an Indian-sit position. "I'm sorry, those girls are really troublesome. Are you okay?" The boy asked with worry. The girl looked a little surprised and her cheeks were a little red. She blinked three times, but nevertheless gave him a shy nod.**

"**My name is Jin, what's yours?" Changing emotions, he told her his name- '_Wait… what?! Jin?! But, that's me! Then, this boy is me?That- that can't be! Just what is going on in here?!'_**

"**M-my name… its-" I waited for her to continue. But, it seems stuck. They weren't moving! Suddenly, the surroundings turned black! I looked around and noticed that I was the only one which has color. _'What the-'_ I couldn't even finish my curse as I felt like I was falling. I noticed that my hair was getting messed up from the strong wind. I screamed and then-**

**End of dream**

"Jin… Jin, wake up!" I heard a voice call out to me. I slowly opened my eyes and saw a blurry figure.

I groaned loudly and focused my eyes on the figure. Apparently, whoever this is ruined my dream as she shook me. The view got clear and clearer. It's none other than Elaine, my mother. Well, not really mother. You see, my parents died ever since I was born, and Elaine here, took care of me. That's what I heard. Although, I think there's still more to it. I don't even know how they died, not even what they look like. Although, I just get this weird feeling that she's hiding something from me. If I were to describe her, she has long, straight cerulean hair reaching up to her waist and striking cerulean eyes. Currently, she's wearing a blue tank top and purple shorts reaching mid-way her thigh.

"What were you doing out here? You could catch a cold you know." Just like her to scold me. "What if you suddenly caught a cold huh? How will you explain that in your first day of school?" Forgot to tell you, she takes things seriously. "Jin, you should know that I'm only worried-" There she goes again. Scolding me like a little baby. She'll probably say something like 'Take care of your health.' "You should learn to take care of your health more and-" I told you so. "Jin, Jin! Are you listening to me?" She placed her hands on her hips and hunched down to look at me.

"Errr…- I uhh need to get ready now." After I said that, I went towards the tree across our house which I use to climb up and down in here. I ran as fast as I could and jumped right to it with the leaves acting as my cushion. I speedily climbed back down and ran inside the house. I heard her say, "Tell me if you meet a cute girl okay? I'll help you get her!" I almost tripped as she said that but regained my balance. _'Just like her to say that.' _I chuckled. I then stopped for a little rest to regain my breath.

Our house is a two-story by the way, it's only normal so I don't need to tell the details.

After regaining my breath, I went upstairs and turned left (I can't turn right because if I did that, I would crash to the wall), passed Elaine and her husband's room, Mica's room (their daughter), and finally, my room.

I entered my room through the door which had the sign, 'Be careful'. The reason I made that sign was because my room is…well, a complete mess. I entered my room and saw the scattered books lying on the floor, crumpled papers which have words on it (of course), and other stuff which is really unbelievable like gauntlets and bandages on my bed.

If I were to describe my room, there's a ruby bed in the upper-right corner (which is still unmade), a desk and chair beside it, a computer table beside the desk, a closet in the upper-left corner, and a window in between the closet and computer. The bathroom is at the middle-left side by the way.

I scratched the back of my head at the mess, but didn't mind it and went to the bathroom. I took a quick shower, washed my face, and brushed my teeth. I draped a towel around my waist to my knees. I went out and took out my school uniform which is a simple polo shirt with a charcoal vest and red necktie to compliment it, and gray pants.

I went back to the bathroom and changed into it. I looked at the mirror and smiled at myself at how it fitted me.

I went out and searched for my bag which I found under my bed, I then searched for the school books, tossing this and that and voila, my school books. I noticed that my notebooks were with them including my writing tools. I packed it all in my red bag. I took the gauntlets at my bed and placed it in, just in case.

I took my bag and went out of my room to the dining table downstairs.

I got a good sniff of the smell of the food coming from the kitchen. It seems delicious.

I reached the dining table and saw that the 2 seats across each other were already occupied by Mica and Roald, Elaine's husband. Both of them greeted me a good morning and I greeted back. Roald has spiky, silver hair, with light blue eyes. He's wearing a simple shirt and a baggy short while reading the newspaper. Mica then, has long, silky, beautiful black hair with bangs adding up to her cool beauty. She also has cerulean eyes like her mother and father. _'Huh? Cerulean eyes and black hair? I feel like I've seen her before too...'_ Nevermind. She's wearing our school uniform which is a blouse with a red ribbon and a green-checkered skirt reaching up her mid-thigh, _'D*m*! She's gorgeous!'_ Eeerrr… I didn't really mean that. No, really. All right, just don't tell anyone I like her okay? Well, right now, she's eating and almost finished.

"Bye mom, bye dad, bye Jin." She waved goodbye to us and I stood there still. _'She sure is leaving early…'_

"Jin, isn't about time you go too?" Roald said without looking at me.

I glanced at the clock and realized that it's already 6:45 a.m.! Just 15 minutes left!

"Graah! I got to go now!" I told them while in panic mode and grabbed a toast and stuffed it in my mouth. Roald said "Take care." While, Elaine said "Be careful okay?", while at the kitchen, I gave her a "Yeah" and went out.

I took out the directions of how to get to school from my pocket which Elaine gave to me so that I wouldn't get lost. _'Thanks Elaine.'_

As I walked, I saw a brown butterfly. Elaine said that if I saw a brown butterfly, it'll bring me good luck. I smiled at this and continued on when I almost stepped on a black cat. Elaine also said that seeing a black cat will bring you bad luck. I frowned at this but immediately dismissed it as I convinced myself that I do't believe in superstitions.

I continued on and finally reached "Serdin High", my school. I entered through the gate and passed the wonderful garden. This school seems rich. I reached the school building and my attention perked up when I heard a beautiful voice singing near the fountain.

'_Well, time for another school year huh? I hope it'll be fun.'_

And that's that. Sorry if it's a reeeeeaaaaaaaaaalllllllyyyyy y booooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing chapter~! But, I promise that I'll make it better next time, I promise~!

(I'll probably update in a week or a month or so.)

-_LoveBuildsHate_


	2. Expect the Unexpected

Hey, I'm back! Sorry if this chapter's a little delayed. Although, I bet that the next chapter will take a little while because we have exams! :/ You'll see what kind this is ;)

Anyways, thanks for the review/s, it made me a little bit more motivated to write this story.

This chapter by the way had a little part with the 1st chapter's ending, because the 1st chapter's ending was shortened.

Now, on with the story!

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTER.**

_ITALICS - THOUGHTS_

Chapter 2: Expect the Unexpected

Jin's POV, 6:55 A.M.

I entered the school building from the huge gate that seems to be almost as tall as our house. I also saw the many students entering as they also wear the same uniform as mine. The only difference is that all of them had a companion and I was the only one in here without a single friend. I sighed. Not that I mind.

I continued on and passed a garden. It looked beautiful. _'Like in my dream…'_ I thought, remembering my weird dream. Except that the only difference is that this has a fountain in the middle and bushes surrounding the garden. The one thing occupying my mind is that dream. It was really weird. '_Why did I dream of that anyway?'_ I asked myself, but just shrugged it off and continued on.

I finally reached the school building. It's reeeeaaallllyyy big! Kind of like a mansion. That wasn't the only thing. There were two other buildings beside it. Just a little smaller than the school building.

I entered it and searched for the principal's office. But, with my sense of direction, I doubt I'll find it. I sighed.

I saw a student wearing the same uniform as me with silver hair and grabbed his shoulders slightly. He turned to look at me with his cold, azure eyes. I flinched a little from his gaze but decided to ask him anyway, "Excuse me, do you know where I can find the principal's office?" He just shrugged and abruptly walked away.

'_What attitude, did I do something to make him like that?'_ I thought with a frown forming in my face. I saw another student, with a little dark, auburn hair. I asked him, "Do you know where the principal's office is?", but he didn't even bother to look at me and just continued on.

'_Is everyone here like this? Great~ nice way to start the school year'_ I thought sarcastically. I went out of the school building to the garden. I sat there on the bench with its back turned from the fountain.

'_I'll never get to the office this way'_ I thought sadly.

"I awaken lost memories… That's the end… of the eternal- story…~" My attention perked up when I heard a beautiful voce singing near me. I stood up. I circled around the fountain and saw a girl sitting on the edge of it. She sang quietly with her eyes closed, "Before I knew it I was running. You were pulling my hand~" She sang with a really nice tone. For me, the song seems to be a bit sad. It's kind of like someone who has no friend, but then discovered that in this world, there are plenty of people who would be willing to share their life with you. Even if it's just temporary.

A/N: This song is the opening song of Angel Beats translated to English.

I listened to her voice singing the sad song. It had a nice ring to it. "I watched it fade… I waved it goodbye… Thank you~" She stopped right after that, seeing that she was done, I clapped my hand gently. She seemed to be startled at this as she shrieked.

I scratched the back of my head.

"Sorry, did I startle you?" Apologizing, I continued on. "That was a very wonderful song; I didn't know there is a singer in here." I complimented her.

She looked at me with confusing, chocolate eyes. _'Weird, have I seen her before?'_ "Really~! You think so?" She suddenly jumped out, her pink twin tails bounced as she did that.

I took a step back, startled by her actions, and replied, "Of course! It was great. Yeah." I sweat dropped at her actions.

"Thank you so much~! I was just practicing that song. I thought that it didn't really fit me, hehe~" She stuck her tongue out, not to me, but to her. I found that cute.

"Why did you like it?" She asked with a serious face on. I was surprised at her weird question and looked at her that said 'What do you mean?'

She read my eyes and repeated her question, "Why do you like it? Is it because I was singing it? Or because you found it wonderful?" She looked straight at me and I averted my face from her, but couldn't avoid the fact of her serious gaze on me. I paused for a moment to think of the answer, and replied, "Well, if you want my opinion, I guess it's because it was a beautiful song that seem to strike the hearts of the people-err me I mean, also because you sang it in the right way and tone, I guess?." I replied, unsure of my answer.

I though she was offended from what I said, but when I looked at her, her face was suddenly very close to mine with a contented smile on her face. I blushed at this and took a few steps away from her.

I turned my back to her and clutched my chest. _'What's happening? Why am I like this! I just met her so there's no way that I already like her!'_

"Ehehe, sorry~" I looked at her again with her tongue stuck out. "That's what you get from startling me earlier~!" She cunningly pointed out.

'_I see… that was revenge…'_ I felt a little disappointed at that.

"My name is Amy, what's yours~?" Click! _'Amy? That name… it clicked in my brain… but I don't know her! What now…'_ I thought, annoyed of the many surprising events.

When I came to my senses, Amy's waving a hand in front of my face. "Are you okay? You seem to be really shocked… Did I say something wrong?" She asked with her tone a bit worried.

'_Shocked?'_ "Uhhh… I'm fine, don't worry. The name's Jin, by the way." After I said the word 'Jin', I heard a gasp escape from her lips. I looked at her and she had her mouth covered with her hands, her eyes widened. Tears were starting to form in her eyes. She took a step aback, and another, then another.

"Hey, are you okay?" I asked nervously. "Did I say something wrong?" She froze for a moment, then she turned away and wiped her about to fall tears.

"I-I'm fine…" She replied, her voice a bit cracked.

She turned her body to look at me again, the shocked face, replaced by her warm smile. "Never mind that, by the way, I haven't heard that name before, are you a new student?" I could tell she was lying from the sound of her voice and the look of her eyes, but I didn't bother to ask. It wasn't my business.

"Kind of, could you tell me where the principal's office is?" I asked again, hoping that she wouldn't ignore me.

"Sure~ I'll be glad to even take you there!" She suggested.

"Are you sure? Don't you have other things to take care of? And yeah, what time is it?" I inquisitively asked.

"Don't worry~! Just let me take you there!" She insisted and I gave in to her with a nod. "The time, its 7:08." After she said that, my eyes widened. _'I'm late!'_ I was ready to run when I noticed that she was still here.

"Why aren't you in class yet?" I asked, ignoring the fact that I'm in the same situation as her.

"Oh! School starts at 7:30. They tell new students to go to school at 7:00 so they can know the school better." She informed me and I slapped my forehead at how I panicked when school will start in 22 minutes.

"What do you say? Let's go to the principal's office! Onward!" She pointed out to the school building, and like a little child, she marched. "Come on Jin, we have to get there fast~!"

"There's no need to rush." I insisted.

She pouted. "I'm going to leave you if you don't hurry up~!" I noticed that she was already at the front of the school building. Her hand waving at me so I could know where she is.

"Alright." I replied to no one. I chuckled also at how childish she could be.

OoOoOo

We passed many other rooms that read cafeteria, teacher's lounge, etc.

As we were walking, almost all of the students greeted Amy a 'good morning'.

"You sure are popular." I stated out.

She blushed at this and looked down with a smile on her face. "Not really…" She denied and I didn't bother to fight back with all of the things that happened. First, I had a weird dream, then this huge school, then the students who ignored me, and then this girl who almost cried when I told her my name! _'What's next?'_ I asked myself, tired at what happened in one single morning.

"Here we are!" I was interrupted from my thoughts as Amy remarked that we're FINALLY here. The sign hanging on top of the door read 'Principal's office'.

Amy knocked on the door. "Come in." We heard a reply from inside and Amy opened the door for us.

We entered a huge room covered with peach walls and marble floors. I inspected it and realized that there was also chandelier was hanging in the middle of the room. There are lots of bookshelves filled with different kinds of books, like it was a library. A glass table with a vase on top of it and two sofas enclosing it stood in the middle of the room. The rest is plants and flowers in all corners of the room. It was plain huge and simple. _'This is an office?'_

I stood there, frozen yet again.

I felt someone tugging on my shirt and realized that it's Amy.

"Let's go~" She grabbed my wrist and I willingly followed.

At the end of the room, we saw an office desk and a girl sitting on a chair. She had really long lime hair and emerald eyes. She also had bangs which was split in the middle, and a headband which had a gem that hung on her forehead.

"Good morning ma'am, this is Jin, a new student." Amy informed her. She nodded at Amy and turned to look at me.

"I've been expecting you. Welcome to Serdin High. It seems like you have already made a friend." She looked at Amy as she said the word 'friend'.

"I'm Enna, the school principal"She held out her hand for me to take it and shake hands, but then, she noticed that my wrist was enclosed by Amy's hand and she giggled. I realized that she could have misunderstood the situation and I blushed, so I immediately retrieved my hand and took a little step sideways.

She giggled again. "Young fellows these days…" I blushed when she said that and sputtered out, "It's not what you think!"

She looked at me with teasing eyes, I just ignored it. Amy only tilted her head sideways and blinked, not understanding the situation.

"Anyways," she started, "This is the password of your locker, your schedule; lucky you, Amy is with you the whole day-" Amy muttered a "Yay!" and I smiled at her childish actions, "-and here is your room number." She gave me a key which read '207'. I was confused at why she gave me this key.

"Excuse me, what do you mean 'room number'? I asked, confused at her actions and what she just said.

Amy and Enna looked at me with wide eyes, then at each other, and then they giggled.

I stared at them dumbly.

"Didn't Elaine tell you? This is a boarding school." As she said that, my mind still didn't get what she said because I'm still confused.

Amy noticed that and repeated what Enna informed me, "This. Is. A. Boarding. School." She emphasized every word to make sure I get it.

'_Boarding… School… wait… What?! Boarding school?!'_

"What?!" I slammed down both of my palms on the office desk and the both of them were startled by my actions.

'_Great, another surprise.'_

_XxXxXx_

I made a little renovation in here. :)

-LoveBuildsHate


	3. Old Times Are Just Memories

I'm back! Sorry for the delay Anyways, on to chapter 3! Enna by the way, is the queen of Serdin, you know, the one who sacrificed herself? I just resurrected her. Hehehe.

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS.**

_ITALICS: THOUGHTS_

**BOLDS: FLASHBACKS**

Chapter 3: Old Times Are Just Memories

Amy's POV 7:15 A.M.

"What?!" I almost squeaked when Jin suddenly slammed his hands on the desk! Thank goodness I got my mouth covered with my hand in time.

"Boarding school? What do you mean boarding school?! Explain it to me this second!" Jin demanded while repeatedly slamming his hands on the desk, forgetting the fact that it's the principal he's talking to.

Principal Enna's face didn't falter at all. At first, she was startled, but now, she just looked at him in interest, and eyes that I feel like were saying, 'I knew it.'

I looked at Jin and scanned his face. Thankfully, he wasn't angry. He was probably surprised, is all. His expression with his left eye twitched looks cute~ _'He never changes.'_ I thought, remembering the time when we played together before.

(End of Amy's POV)

**FLASHBACK 6:00 P.M. **- Only Amy knows this right now, okay?-LBH

**A little girl with pink hair braided neatly on her back, joyfully ran through the street. "Hurry up Jin! The festival is here~!" She inquired, excited about the upcoming festival. "Come on, you slowpoke~!" She waved her hands in the air, signifying the boy who she was waiting for where she was.**

**The so called boy showed up with an exhausted face. "What's the hurry, Amy? It's not like the festival's going to run," He complained a little with his hands in his pocket, "and if you run like that, you might trip on your dress…" He pointed out to Amy, who's wearing a light red spaghetti strap dress, reaching down to her knees.**

**Amy didn't seem to be bothered by what he said and ignored it. "We have lots of things to do! Like… eat cotton candy, play the shooting the prize game, the fish catching game… and play the-" She starts to enumerate the things they ought to do. Jin stared at her with a look that said, 'I want to go home…' He's not interested in things like this anyway.**

"**-and that's when we take a break and eat cotton candy again!" Amy exclaimed happily, enjoying her day.**

"**I'm too tired… I don't have too much energy like you…" Jin tried to get out with his head hung low on the ground.**

"**Ooooh! Come on! You'll miss out all the fun~!" Amy pestered him.**

"**But-" Before Jin could complain anymore, Amy grabbed his wrist and walked right into the festival.**

**OoOoOo**

**They entered it and saw many stands filled with food and lots of fun games.**

"**Oh-oh! Look at that!" Amy pointed her finger at the stand where you have to shoot at the prize to get it.**

"**I'm gonna' try it!" She exclaimed with glee.**

"**But, Amy, it's not that easy-" Jin couldn't even finish his sentence as Amy was already running off to the stand. **

"**Oh well," He mumbled to himself and sighed. He shrugged while smiling a little at Amy's childishness and followed her.**

**Jin reached Amy and saw her handing out some coins to the man who owns the stand.**

**Amy noticed Jin and smiled at him, he smiled back. **

**Amy got the weapon to shoot at the prize from the man. She set herself in position and targeted the rabbit doll. A/N: The rabbit doll is Twinky ;)**

**She pulled the trigger and it missed the doll above its shoulder. Amy felt disappointed, but dismissed it and targeted it again, unfortunately, it missed again.**

"**One more," The man reminded her. **

**Amy was on the verge of crying, she only had one chance left. Jin noticed this and grabbed the gun. Amy looked at him and he just smiled. He set himself in position and- tick – it hit the doll and it fell!**

**Amy was surprised at how good Jin is at this. He doesn't even know guns that much! Amy thinks she knows more about it, but in actuality, maybe she was wrong.**

**The man handed out the claimed prize at Jin and smiled at him, then at Amy. Jin smiled back yet again to the man.**

**Jin turned to her and held out the doll. "Here." He said with a warm smile. _'It's just like when he gave me his handkerchief…'_ Amy thought with a nostalgic memory.**

**She looked at the doll. _'How cute…'_ She thought while admiring the rabbit doll. She looked at Jin who was smiling at her.**

**Looking back at the doll, she slowly took it from Jin's hands. She gazed at it for a moment… and hugged it after.**

"**Thank you sooo much Jin~!" She exclaimed to him and hugged him like a teddy bear.**

**Jin said, "Welcome…" and patted her back.**

**Amy let go of him and suggested, "Let's go there!" Immediately changing her trance, she pointed her finger to the creepy-looking house. It seems like a haunted house. Jin looked at her, curious. "You sure? When we went to the cemetery, you freaked out didn't you?" Jin worriedly asked.**

**Amy remembered the incident and stiffened a little, Jin didn't fail to notice this.**

"**Well? Do you still want to go?" He questioned teasingly.**

**Amy recovered from her trance. "Of course I want to go! I'm not a baby…!" She pointed out to him while screaming, making Jin cover his ears with his hands. She pouted. **

"**All right, all right already. Fine." He gave in.**

"**Well then… let's go~!" Amy marched to the house.**

"**. . ."**

**". . ."**

**". . ."**

**Amy stopped from her tracks and turned to Jin who hasn't moved yet. "D-don't just stand there!" She shakily said.**

**Jin heavily sighed. He followed where Amy is and Amy went on.**

**OoOoO**

"**Aaaaaah!" A shriek could be heard through out the haunted house. **

"**How come there are bats in here?!" Amy inquired.**

"**Well, duh, this is a haunted house. And, it's not a real bat; it's just some stupid robot." Jin informed her. He looked around and saw a spider web hanging in the ceiling, the dirty molds on the walls, creepy, blood-like paintings, and those other stuff.**

**Amy glared at Jin a little. "You don't have to be so snippy about it." Complaining, she pouted and continued on.**

"**You're the one who wanted to come here." Jin informed her yet again.**

**No reply.**

**Jin sighed. He didn't mean to say that. He's just really tired, is all. **

**.**

**.**

**.**

"**Aaaaah!" He heard another shriek. He sighed again. He reached Amy who's shaking terribly.**

**He pats her on her shoulder, and Amy, who didn't know this, gave a loud scream. Jin covered his ears with his hands because Amy's shriek became louder than before.**

"**Amy… Amy! It's me, Jin!" He informed her while he was covering his ears. Amy stopped screaming and turned to look at the voice who spoke. **

"**It's just you Jin… you scared me." She said while trying to regain her breath. **

**His eye twitched.**

"**More like you scared me…" He sent right back to her.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

"**Jin, you win. I'm really scared… Let's get out here now, please?" Amy begged him with pleading eyes.**

**Jin didn't even give a second thought and grabbed her hand and walked right back to the entrance even though that's not allowed.**

**Amy was surprised at this and blushed, Jin failing to notice this because it's too dark.**

**OoOoO**

"**Finally!" Amy stretched her arms after they got out.**

"**Thanks, Ji-" Amy failed to finish the sentence when she noticed Jin staring at his watch so intently.**

"**Jin?" Amy questioned.**

**Jin removed his serious gaze and smiled. "Let's go."**

**Before Amy could reply, Jin's already walking off.**

**Amy reached him and asked, "What's the rush?"**

**Jin only smiled at her and walked faster.**

"**Wait up!"**

**OoOoO**

**Jin and Amy reached a forest with a slope. Jin walked up to it, with Amy following behind him.**

"**What are we doing here, Jin?" Amy questioned him again.**

**Jin didn't reply.**

"**If you're going to scare me, it's not funny, okay?" She worriedly exclaimed.**

"**Don't worry." He assured her.**

"**Okay…"**

**They finally reached the top when Jin stopped. Amy was confused. **

**She inspected where they are and her eyes widened at the scene.**

**From here, they could see the city filled with colorful lights. You could see the whole festival: the haunted house, the stands, even the play that was supposed to be a traditional dance or something. In the city, the tall buildings were shining with colorful lights, it was probably like that because of the glass. You could also hear the sound of the cars and the music playing.**

**She looked back at Jin who gave her another smile. Jin walked up to her and guided her to a bench where they could sit.**

'_**How did he…?'**_

**As if he read her thought, Jin said, "This is my secret place. No one knows where this is except me." He informed her again. **

**Amy looked at him with surprised eyes at why he would take her here. **

**As if Jin read her thoughts again, he said, "You're my very first friend." He looked at her with thankful eyes. "Thanks for everything, Amy." He smiled at her again, a distant, warm smile.**

**Amy blinked. _'Why does it feel like he's going away…?'_ Amy thought with sad eyes, then dismissed the thought and felt like she was just going paranoid.**

**Suddenly, there was a light explosion from above.**

**Amy looked up and realized that those were fireworks. She watched every one of them fill the dim sky with colorful lights.**

**She looked back at Jin who's eyes were focused at the fireworks.**

'_**Thank you… Jin."**_

**END OF FLASHBACK**

Amy looked at Jin and Enna who was having a staring contest.

'_If only you remember…'_

_XxXxXxX_

And that's that. Sorry for the boring chapter. =.= I'll make it up to you next time if I can.

-LoveBuildsHate


	4. Boarding School And Center Of Attention?

I'm back again! Sorry for the delay. You see, we had exams just this and morning and yesterday too. So, really sorry for this! So please, I hope that's enough for you guys. Anyways, on to the story! Oh, and, sorry for sooooooooo many other characters. But, it's really necessary for the plot.

Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS.

XxXxX

Chapter 4: Boarding School And Center of Attention?

Jin's POV 7:20 A.M.

I continued to have a staring contest with our principal, Enna. She also stared at me, each waiting for anyone of us to talk.

I didn't give up. I still stared at her, demanding my answer if this really is a boarding school.

She didn't falter either. We continued to stare at each other. Until, Amy broke the silence.

"U-ummm… Jin…" She mumbled.

I turned my head to look at her. Her face seems to be pretty worried. "What?" I asked her.

"… It's just that… this really is a boarding school." She began to say to me.

I thought about it for a second. It's not that I'm really angry at them. It's just that… why would Elaine send me to a boarding school?

Amy's eyes wandered around the room. I wonder why? Her eyes fell on me, but she immediately distracted herself to look at other things, her face a bit red.

'What's with her?' I asked myself through simple curiosity

"Ehem." I heard a stifled cough close to me. It came from the principal.

"So, have you calmed down now, Jin?" She looked at me with a slight smile.

_'Crap! I acted like I'm talking to a kid! I hope that she's not angry… I guess not from the look of her face. But…'_ I began to wonder. _'She also seems familiar…'_

_'Bah! Why is everyone familiar in here, huh?!'_ I screamed at the back of my head.

As I thought of that, an image suddenly appeared in my head. It was a little red-haired boy who was being patted on his head by a green-haired woman. They seem familiar (again).

Both of them are smiling too.

"Well then," I was cut off from my thoughts when Enna began to say something. "You two should be going by now, it's almost time for the bell to ring." She told us.

"Y-yes Ma'am!" Amy replied to her. Then, she grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the room before I could even say goodbye to the principal.

OoOoOo

"What was that for?" I asked her while looking at my arm which she held.

"That was too close, you know?!" She screamed at me.

I was a bit taken aback by her sudden, blunt reply.

Amy sighed. "Thank goodness the principal didn't throw us out! Although, I guess she did throw us out by saying we need to get going. Oh! But, maybe-" She evaluated all the possible reasons of why the principal didn't get angry. I stared at her dumbly. Not listening to her.

"Anyways," she began, "maybe I should introduce you to my friends~! It'll be fun!" She exclaimed.

"Uhhh… sure?" I replied, unsure of my answer.

"Great! Then… off we go!" She positioned to her marching trance again and I just chuckled.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

We noticed that the bell rang and that means it's time for us to go to our class.

Amy sighed again, disappointed.

"Oh well, I guess I'll introduce you to them next time, okay?" She offered with a sad smile.

'She must really want me to meet them…' I thought while gazing at her.

"So," she began, "what class would you be in?" Amy asked me curiously.

Now that you mention it, I don't know.

I reached for my pocket in where I placed the schedule the principal gave me.

It said that I'm in room 2-B. Homeroom, huh?

Amy looked over my shoulder and her face lit up.

"Yey! You're in the same class as me~!" She exclaimed. "The principal just said that, right?" She didn't notice me say that. She continued to dance and dance and dance.

I looked at her and smiled at her actions.

_'Just like before…'_ I thought while watching her twirl around and say, "Jin is with me~" in a singsong voice.

Then, my eyes widened. _'Huh? Like before? What am I saying?'_ And just like that, I felt like I was going to have goosebumps.

"What are you standing in there for, Jin? We're going to be late!" Again, I was cut off from my thoughts when Amy pulled me to our class.

OoOoOo

"So, you're the new student?" A woman greeted me. She had beautiful, lime hair like the principal, although, she looks more like a student than a teacher.

"My name is Lime. Nice to meet you." She introduced herself to me with a warm smile.

"I'll be your homeroom and history teacher, okay?" She informed me.

"Okay?" I replied to her with a weird face because she really looks like a student, and really looks younger than me.

"Good." She told me. "Well then," She looked at Amy who was beside me, "Amy, you should get to your seat now." She commanded her. There's more to action than looks, I guess…

Amy looked at me worriedly. I smiled at her and assured her that I'll be fine. She nodded her head and therefore, went inside the classroom.

Lime looked at me and smiled also. "I'll call for you when you will be introduced. So, wait here, okay?" Before I could reply, she was already walking off to enter the class.

End of Jin's POV

OoOoOo The same time when Jin and Amy were still talking inside the office.

The students where scattered all around the room. Probably with their cliques. There are a lot of cliques in here. The populars, the nerds, and the rebels are mostly the one with the most people. Well. not really the most people. Just the outstanding ones. The other cliques like the cheerleaders, drama geeks or something like that doesn't really matter since they're just regular cliques. They're all talking and chattering like there's no tomorrow here and there.

First, let's see what the popular group is talking about.

"Hey, did you here?" A shrilly, female voice excitedly asked her group of 'friends'. She had long blonde, hair.

"Hm?" Another replied. Cool tone looming over their crowd.

"I think we have a transfer student! And the best part is, I think he's a boy!" She told everyone with her hands clamped an excitement, ignoring the crazed looks she's getting from her classmates because of her loud voice.

"You really didn't need to use the 'he' part. Considering you only go for guys most of the time." Mica (Jin's crush: his housemate.) remarked. The girl glared at her. "But, I guess that's what you're here for, right?" She sarcastically said, not bothered by her 'friend's' look at her. The boy who said 'hm' earlier swooned at her tone, the others did too. The girl growled and hissed a "d*m* you" under her breath. Mica smiled in return.

"Curse you, Mica." She snarled.

"Whatever, Ellie." She replied back in return.

The boy between them only gave a worried smile.

"Do we have to go through this all over again?" A boy complained. He had spiky, black hair with matching obsidian eyes. He's wearing the same school uniform as Jin, of course.

"What?! Amy's with a stranger?!" They heard a interrupting sound from the nerd group, who immediately stopped and looked down, probably embarrassed. Continuing on…

"Shut it, ERCNARD, you're not in this." She barked at him, emphasizing the word Ercnard to annoy him.

Sieghart, hearing his name being called by someone he doesn't particularly like, glared at her with a really, terrifying look.

The boy between Mica and Ellie jumped down from the table. He had long, blue hair tied into a ponytail with dark, blue eyes. He made his way to Sieghart, and gave him a pat on his shoulder. Sieghart looked at him, and they stared at each other for a while, neither talking. You can see Sieghart and him sometimes nod or shake their heads, like they were talking telepathically or something.

Meanwhile, while Sieghart and the blue boy were talking…

"Ugh, I hate you. Why are you even popular? You never even had a boyfriend." Ellie hissed at Mica.

Mica didn't seem to be bothered by her tone. In fact, she enjoyed it. "Jealous?" Mica's words -err- word struck her like a thunderbolt.

Ellie's ears reddened and bursted out a "No!"

Mica smiled more. "Really? I guess you're not really jealous considering the fact that your ex-boyfriend left you to hit on me, huh?" Mica sarcastically pointed out, enjoying the looks of Ellie.

Ellie was already gripping her handkerchief hard. It looked like she was strangling it.

"You are so dead." She said to Mica in a warning tone.

"Bring it on." She playfully replied. Before the bell rung.

OoOoOo

Guess that's that for the popular crowd. Meanwhile, let's go to the nerd group. This is the same time as the popular crowd was talking.

"Hey, do you know 'bout the new transfer?" A short lilac haired girl asked her fellow members. She has purple eyes matching her hair. She's a bit small despite her age.

"I guess so…" A blue-haired girl wearing glasses replied to her timidly. She has a blue-colored eye on the right, and a red-colored eye on the left. She seems to have heterochromia.

"I think we have a transfer student! And the best part is, I think he's a boy!" They heard a disturbing sound from the popular crowd, who didn't even pay attention to them glaring.

"So, I was thinking." The lilac haired girl began after the interruption.

"You want to recruit him, right Arme?" The blue haired girl finished her sentence for her.

The said girl smiled, "You read my thoughts, Mari."

"If you want to recruit him, might as well know him." Mari advised her.

"Well, I did see a red-haired boy with Amy this morning." Arme started to ponder.

Mari looked at her, little interest flickering in her eyes.

"What?! Amy's with a stranger?!" A brown-haired boy with emerald eyes suddenly bursted out loud, hearing their conversation. He has brown hair and matching eyes.

All the students inside their class stared at them, especially the rebel group. They really didn't like too much noise.

"You idiot!" Arme told her friend in a low voice, whispering.

The said boy only looked down, embarrassed. The students then resumed to what they were doing.

"But- how can I help it when you just said Amy? And with a st-" Before he could finish his complaining, Arme clamped his mouth shut.

"Will you please quiet down, Kyle?!" Arme growled at him, annoyed probably.

The said boy nodded his head slowly. Arme thought of this as a signal to let go of his mouth.

"Seriously," Arme slammed her palms on her forehead, "why do you always get worked up about Amy? Do you like her that much? What's so great about her?" Arme began to question him why he likes this 'Amy' so much.

Kyle saw this the moment as the chance for him to prove that his crush is a very wonderful girl.

"Well, don't you think that Amy's really cute?" Kyle remarked.

"You like her because of that?" Arme looked at him with one eyebrow raised, her tone disappointed. Mari just sighed.

"I'm not done. I do like her. I mean, she's really kind. Smart too. She's also part of the cheerleading club. She's even part of the drama club, you know? And-" Kyle was interrupted from the sudden ring of the bell. Kyle sighed, disappointed from being unable to finish his 'claim of love'.

"Saved by the bell…" Mari heard Arme mutter that as they went back to their seats.

OoOoOo

That's for the nerd group. Anyways, let's go to the rebel group. Same time too.

"New student." A cold, stiff tone told his fellow rebels about a new student in a very short way. He had light, orange-auburn hair, with bloody, mauve eyes.

"Recruit?" Another dark voice said, signaling that he was listening. He had silver hair, accompanied with deep, azure eyes.

"I think we have a transfer student! And the best part is, I think he's a boy!" An annoying, light voice they heard from the popular crowd. They ignored it and went on. They're always like that.

The red-eyed rebel gave a half-nod.

"Is he worth it?" A menacing voice joined them. He had amaranth hair and matching eyes.

Both of them shrugged, not knowing the answer.

The amaranth haired boy snorted. "Like last time." Hearing this, the two glared at him intensely. He didn't seem to be bothered by this.

Apparently, last time there was a new student, who seemed like a rebel. They recruited her and she agreed, but because she was a blabbermouth, they had to kick her out. They really didn't like noisy places except when they hang out or something.

The azure-haired guy gave out an irritated sigh. "Guy. Firm." With those both words that came out from his mouth, the two immediately understood what he said. The new student is a guy and he seems to have good shape. Perfect for rebels.

"Good." The amaranth haired guy replied with a smirk. It looks like they'll win this time.

"What?! Amy's with a stranger?!" Another annoying blunt they heard. Now though, it came from the nerds. They glared at them, not expecting them to be so loud and annoying. Continuing on…

"Competition…" The mauve haired guy muttered out. The two heard this. "Probably." The amaranth haired guy answered with a smirk.

The two other guys smirked too. This is going to be fun.

With that, the bell rang and their 'classmates' or so the teachers call it, were going to their seats. They didn't move. Like nothing happened. Like it was normal.

XxXxXx

And that's that. Sorry for this. I kind of lost my original idea but this will do. I hope you like it. I'm sorry if I've been posting boring chapters in this story. I just want to go slow and not too fast at the plot. Once again, sorry.

Anyways, if you're going to ask, no, they don't know each other yet. I just want to fix them up on how they'll meet each other. And the part about the former girl rebel? Guess who. You already know.

Anyways, I'm really sorry again.

-LoveBuildsHate


	5. Suspicions

. . . So, this is the next chapter. I'm sorry I haven't updated for a while. I just- lost my inspiration a little bit. :( I'm sorry again because this story is full of flashbacks and doesn't seem to be progressing forward. Sorry if I'm always saying sorry. :/

Anyways, enjoy! Or not... :\

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Chapter 5: Suspicion

Jin's POV

I waited for the call of my homeroom teacher, Lime. I stood just outside my class which had the sign '2-B' hanging from what seem like a thin, gold metal.

I stared at the unfamiliar wooden door and bit my thumbnail over and over again. I'm really nervous. Reason is because I'm going to have to introduce myself again in front of all those rich students. I paced back and forth in a mere 5 meters distance.

You see, I have a reason why I'm so nervous… Something just had to happen that day. I sighed, mentally tired.

**FLASHBACK**

"… **I like to read books," A young boy my age said, he paused for a while, pondering on what to say. "…and I dislike people who don't appreciate knowledge." And that's the end of the introduction of my best friend, Kyle.**

**Our classmates clapped. Some had a smiling face, while some were just plain bored. He walked back to his seat with his chest puffed out. He was positioned just beside me in the 2****nd**** row. I gave him a faltering, stiff smile. A little happy that my best friend did just fine.**

"**Oh, come on Jin!" He sat down to his seat and slapped my back. "It's gonna be fine! Stop shaking already!" He semi-whispered into my ear, trying to encourage me. **

**I gave a constrained nod, hoping he wouldn't notice that his words have no effect on me. But since he's a nerd, I guess my plan failed.**

"**Come on!" He whacked my back real hard. Not noticing my pain, he pressed on, "You're like the toughest guy in school! Don't tell me you can't even-"**

"**That was in our last school! Now is different…" I remarked. Cutting him off from his 'compulsion'.**

"**Come on, it won't be that bad. I mean- you're like-" I didn't bother to listen to him anymore and just lay down my head on the desk and rested on my arms. "and- hey! Are you even listening?" I looked up to his annoyed face. He sighed. I groaned. Another student was still introducing herself so we could still talk like this in a 'quiet' way or whatever you call it. "Okay, now that you're back in action, let's continue!" He raised his arm like he just won some contest. **_**'Great, what friend I have.'**_** I rolled my eyes at the thought.**

"**Next up is… Jin Kaien!" The teacher called out to us. Apparently, it's my time. I sighed again. How many times have I sighed again? I can't remember.**

"**Go get 'hem." Immediately changing emotions, Kyle gave me a thumbs-up. I'm happy that I got away from his babbles, but not really when it's my turn to introduce myself. Maybe I should have just gone with my plan to pretend to be sick? Oh well, what's life without problems? Pssh, that would be boring.**

**I slowly got up from my seat and strode to the front, where the horror of my life will finally commence.**

'_**It's gonna be fine, gonna be fine, gonna be fine…'**_** Those words rang inside my head. Hoping that it'll turn out just fine, I stood confidently and fixed up my voice.**

"**My name is Jin Kaien." I started. "I live in the small town inside Kanavan City…" I trailed off. Not really proud that I'm living in the poor district or how I got here. **

"**Excuse me." A student raised her hand. She had blonde hair reaching to her back and this pool of green eyes that I felt like I've seen it before…**

"**Yes?" Our teacher called out in return. She looked at her list, flipping the pages until she saw the picture of the girl. "You're Miss Ella Onizuka, correct?" She then looked at 'Ella' and asked, "What is it?"**

"**You said you live in the small town inside Kanavan City, correct?" I gave her a slow nod, unable to realize where she's getting at. "If that's so… how come you're here?" I blinked. Wasn't it obvious that I'm here to study? Heh, this kid has no sense at all. "No offense but," she started, "the people who live in the districts of Kanavan usually don't have money." What? Is she insulting me?! "They're only there because the government is kind enough to give them a place to stay." A vein started to show in my forehead from being pissed. "And hearing that you came from there, how did you manage to get here in this rich school?" She finished with a proud yet suspicious tone. I stared at her dumbfounded. '**_**Is she being suspicious of me being in this school without money? True, we really don't have much money but that doesn't mean that I can't enroll here, right? Right…?'**_** I gulped. **_**'Now that she mentions it… how did I even get here?'**_** I froze. She's right. We couldn't enroll in this prestigious school even if we tried to save up money for a year. **_**'Then, how did I get here?'**_** But that doesn't mean that she can say those things.**

**She rose from her seat and slammed her hands down. "Or did you do something to the principal maybe?" She questioned me with yet another suspicious tone. My body tensed up. The whole class was stunned. They looked at Ella with wide eyes, and the next thing is that they were whispering. I gathered up my courage and replied back, "Where are you getting at?" I questioned her with the same tone as her. She didn't answer my question as I didn't answer hers. We stared at each other with her observing my movement and with me glaring at her. We continued to glare at each other with the both of us gritting our teeth. **_**'What the h*l* is this girl's problem?! I haven't done a single thing to her and I just got here! I better get to the bottom of this.'**_** Thinking straight, I clenched my hands into fists. **

"**Ms. Ella, that's enough!" Our teacher suddenly said in a commanding voice to THAT girl, interrupting our internal fight. She turned her glare over to the teacher, "You dare point those eyes on me." She said in a warning tone and glared back, more intense than Ella's. "Sit down now before I make you clean the whole school for a month." She told her, her voice getting low but terrifying as she said the last word. Ella stiffened. One thing's for sure, this woman is scary when she's mad. **_**'Take precautions.'**_** I nodded at my thought in my head. The whole angry thing was gone and replaced with a one-sided fight between the teacher and that girl. Ella gritted her teeth and hesitated at first, but nevertheless sat down.**

**Our teacher sighed in irritation. She turned her head to me. My eye twitched at her look because her glare was still there. "I'm sorry." The terrifying look was gone and replaced by an apologizing glance. She continued, "She's not usually like this. I hope that you'll be willing to let this go." She bowed to me in an apologizing trance and returned to her table in front of the class. "Okay class, that's enough for the introduction." She looked at me and nodded, signaling me to go back to my seat. I didn't reply. I simply went back and sat down. **_**'Like h*l* I'll forget that.'**_** I gritted my teeth and held my desk tightly, making it creak a little from the force.**

**END OF FLASHBACK**

I sighed. I never want to repeat that experience again. I think that was one of the reason why we had to move here in Serdin. Don't get me wrong, Kanavan is nice. It's just that- oh well, no use brooding over the past now that I'm here.

Now that I remember, she looked awfully familiar. There's a bit of a striking resemblance to her with someone I know. The only problem is that I don't remember. _'Great thinking, Jin.'_ I rolled my eyes at my own sarcasm. Thinking back, I placed my hand under my chin and went to my focused mode. _'Hmmm… Something about her hair? No. There's something different… Her eyes, maybe? Well, I think that has some bit of a connection. Maybe- no, no. Ahhhh!'_ I ruffled my hair in annoyance. Sheesh, this girl is giving me a headache.

After that thought, I heard Lime clap her hands for attention. "Okay class, we have a new student. Please welcome him with warm hands." I heard some talking and gossips. Never mind, it's finally my time. I gulped and subconsciously clenched my hands.

I reached my hand to the silver doorknob and placed my palm under it. I sighed again. Gathering courage, I turned the handle and slightly pushed the door to reveal the class looking at me. Some were slightly amused while some were plain bored. All of them look like they were snobby, rich kids except for a few. I let my eyes wander to look at them and I noticed that Mica was also there and she was looking at me. Our eyes met and I ended up breaking the eye-contact because I felt like blushing. _'Oh, great'._ I dismissed the image and looked around again. I saw Kyle seated in his seat but, he wasn't at all looking at me. In fact, it looked like he wasn't at all interested. His eyes were focused on a familiar girl who happened to be seated in front of him and the one who guided me to the office, Amy. She was looking at me with her hands under her chin in a girly manner. Her smile looked dazzling, in fact – too dazzling. Anyway, I let my eyes wander again and that's when I noticed some few guys looking at me, or maybe glaring if that's what you call it. They look weird, especially with that smirk. Oh, both of them are the one who ignored me when I asked them a simple question. What a wonderful memory. Notice my sarcasm? Anyways, my eyes really narrowed into slits when I saw a very familiar, annoying girl, Ella. _'Come on, I thought that I finally got away from her! *sigh* Great way to start my year.'_ I rolled my eyes to the back of my head, and at the same time, a vein popped out on my forehead.

All of that happened in few seconds as I was walking towards the front. The teacher, Lime, was writing my name on the blackboard. I reached and waited for Lime to finish writing. The noise of the chalk clattering with the blackboard was all the sound heard throughout the room.

"This is Jin Kaien. As I said, he's our new student." She started to name me in front of them. When she was done, she looked at me. I accepted it as a silent symbol of telling me to go and introduce myself.

"I'm Jin Kaien." I started off as a formal way of telling my way in front of everyone even if I have to repeat what the teacher said. "I…" I paused for a moment, thinking of what to say, "…like martial arts." Without looking at anyone, I looked down. Who knows why? "I dislike anyone who uses their knowledge for weak purposes." I looked up again, and the first thing I saw was the three guys at the back of the room. The other two who ignored me weren't looking at all, but this purple-haired guy is looking at me with his eyes narrowed into slits. Weird. A bead of sweat slipped down my forehead. _'Why do I feel uneasy?' _I gulped, especially when I saw his hidden, devious smirk. By the way, just to tell you, I won't tell my address anymore since I don't want to repeat that experience again.

"Okay." I broke away my eyes when I heard the teacher clap her hands. "That's enough for the introduction." I nodded my head in agreement. "Now, let's see where you'll sit." She looked around the room to find a vacant seat for me and her eyes lit up when she saw that the seat just beside Kyle was available. Her hands touched my back and she pushed me on and on until I finally understood what she meant. "Ugh…" I annoyingly mumbled. I went to the designed seat and placed my bag on top of the desk.

I half-opened my eye to see Kyle seated to my left beside the window. He was still looking at Amy seated in front of him at the 1st row. "Nice to meet you." I abruptly interrupted his gaze to Amy. He turned to look at me while saying. "Nice to meet you to-" His mouth fell and for a moment, none of us said anything. Then…

"Jin!" I was startled by his immediate call to me. "Why didn't you tell me you were here, dude?" He excitedly asked me while crying tears of joy. Anime-like I mean. The only weird thing is why does everyone not mind this stupid idiot pestering me? *sigh* I'll never understand stupid, rich schools.

XxXxXxXx

I'm sorry, as I told you, I kind of lost a little motivation to write this since we have exams when we come back. I'm really sorry, but this is just a little filler to remind you that I'm still alive. =.=

Anyways, I don't really have that much free time to write this story, so I'll just fix the errors that I didn't notice in the other chapters. Anyways, sorry again. :(

Oh, it's also fine if you don't review since I don't expect you to like this boring story.

-LoveBuildsHate =.=


	6. Exhaustion

About Kyle's appearance, he doesn't look like Kiba, I made a huge mistake on that. This is what his hair looks like: **Midway-short, spiky brown hair scattered in all directions going straight when it reaches the back and separated bangs like all the others.**

They are only 14; I made another mistake in their age. Since I've been making too many mistakes, I might as well re-read them all and correct everything.

Sorry for the wait. And I won't be putting any author's note from now on unless it's necessary, okay? Oh, and most of the time, every chapter is Jin's POV. All of the things I'm saying here are just my imagination and some may not even be in the Grand Chase.

* * *

Chapter 6: Exhaustion

Jin's POV

"Jin!" He practically screamed at my ears which made me cover both of them with my hands. "W-what? W-when did you-? I mean- how come you're here? And why didn't you-?" He was mumbling for words. They must have gotten stuck on his throat when he saw me.

I gave a small laugh, "Kyle, you're barely making a sentence," I smiled. It has been a long while since we last saw each other. The last time we saw each other was about 3 years.

He breathed heavily for air, trying to remain composed. "You should have told me you were coming here! I could have invited the whole class and throw a huge party for you! No, wait- maybe even the whole school!" He gave me a toothy grin like the usual smile I see. Seeing that made me crack a smile.

But seriously, the whole school? They barely even know me.

I looked around and noticed that not only the teacher was gone, the students were chatting like crazy as well.

I feel confused. I mean, why is there no teacher? I don't think homeroom will be over that fast.

"Hey, Kyle," I called his attention and snapped him out from his reverie. He turned to me with a curious look on his face, his excited demeanor gone.

"Why is there no teacher?" I asked him dumbfounded. At first, Kyle looked confused. He thought about it for a moment, and when it looked like he got it, he snapped his fingers. "You mean Introduction Day, right?"

I blinked when he said that. Curious about what he meant, I raised my eyebrows. "Hmmm… if I have to summarize it, basically, all we do the whole day is getting to know each other. It lasts for about three days, I think, since it's really hard to get along with these guys especially if your life is natural. After three days, that's when we'll begin the Opening Ceremony." He explained to me with his chin up, as if he was bragging.

"Well, that's what they all say, but I think the main reason is the teachers are too lazy to teach on the first day." He sarcastically chuckled after.

'_Introduction Day, huh? My previous school doesn't have that kind of day… interesting…'_

This guy's name is Kyle Alasther von Cloude, by the way. He comes from the Cloude family- known as the holy strategists of Serdin. I don't see a reason as to why they're holy, but the strategist part is seemingly perfect of their kind. I lived somewhere near here, where I met him.

**FLASHBACK**

**I stared at the wooden dummy positioned behold my eyes. Seeing it, I mustered all the strength in my body to my fists. Even though it's just wood and the possibility of it attacking me is unlikely, I still went in position, since I'm in training.**

**I slowly but deeply breathed for air. I placed my right foot in front, with my body facing the left side. Readying myself, I gave a straight, right jab to the wood, following it with my left. I then gave it an uppercut and as fast as I could, I jumped and spun myself in the air with my right knee hitting its head when I got in the right position. I landed immediately soon after I did that..**

**Wanting to practice more of my punches, again I punched the doll but this time, with my left hook. I wanted to do multiple roundhouse kicks from low to high, but seeing that this can't even move, I did another thing instead. I repeatedly jabbed it with my knuckles, then as if it was real, I quickly gathered energy to my heel and swiftly raised it to its head, with my heel hitting it with much strength. Lastly, with my right foot, I swung it in circular motion, giving it a roundhouse kick.**

**This thing is wooden, so it really hurt me a lot when I gave it my punches and kicks. But I had to get used to it, after all, it's not like we had enough money to buy such things as punching bags.**

"**Jin." I heard a familiar voice call out my name. Realizing who it is, I quickly turned around and bow down my head. "You called, Master?"**

"**You have been training since morning," he began, "it's already noon, you should rest," he finished with a slight smile. My face clearly showed that I was surprised; I didn't notice it was already noon. That proves I've been training for hours. **

**I sighed. I guess I've been tired. I could feel my sweat dripping down from my face to my chest. I've only noticed until now, but my whole ornament was soaked; mostly my shirt. It turned from red to a deep shade of almost black. **

**I gasped for air and fell down on my back into the green patch. I didn't realize how tired I was. I guess I should have paid attention to the time more closely.**

"**Let's go back, Jin." My Master said and my attention went back to him. Following his orders, I slowly got up. I felt like my body wanted to just stay there forever since I really took a hard time just getting up.**

**When I finally got back on my own feet, I noticed Master's gaze is directed close to the park. The park is close to where we were. You can see it in this side of the forest; I always train here, but just on the verdict of it.**

**Master's eyes narrowed slightly; it looked like it didn't even move to others, but to me, since I knew him for a long time already, even a millimeter of his eyes moving, I would notice it like he notices mine.**

**Master is an honest, brave, and dignified person, that's why, when something bad happens in front of him, he won't hesitate to stop it.**

**I quickly moved my eyes to where he was looking; in the corner of the park, there were a bunch of guys huddling together – or maybe cornering a person if you may ask. I couldn't see it clearly, but there was this kid about my age, his complexion a bit tanned. His hands were cupping his face which made it impossible for me to see his eyes, but I could at least notice that his hair was brown. **

**From the looks of it, they were bullying the poor guy. He was crouching on his knees, looking helpless. **

**Without noticing, I was already running towards them. My feet felt weak because of training, but I couldn't help it. I couldn't just leave him alone. His eyes showed hints of anger and fear. If I just let him be like that, who knows what will happen.**

**To think that there are still people using power for violence is frustrating…**

"**Hey, you idiots!" I couldn't help but greet them that way. When you're facing guys like this, I's best to speak their language for them to notice you.**

**Reaching them with an exhausted look carved into my face, I asked them in anger, "What do you think you're doing?" I faced them with courage while I shielded the brown-haired boy with my back.**

"**Jin!" I heard the voice behind me call my name, with a sigh of relief.**

**I returned his relieved face with a small smirk.**

**END OF FLASHBACK**

I coughed out a snicker when I replayed the whole thing in my mind. It was kind of nostalgic to remember that, and yet even though the situation seemed bad, it was a bit funny.

Speaking of names, I wonder how Kyle knew my name back then. That was the first time we met after all. It was too much of a coincidence if he guessed it, and there's no way I would have a look-alike with the same name…

I hope I'm not confusing my own memory… or maybe I'm just being insecure since it's been a long time since we met.

"Hey, what's with that?" Speaking of the person I was talking about, there he is, with a questioning look carved in his face. "Hey, tell me, what's with the laugh? I don't remember talking about something funny, you know?" He directed his suspicious, yet idiotic gaze to me. He really hasn't changed one bit since then.

Forgetting what I thought about earlier, I replied, "No, never mind. I just remembered something trivial."

"Trivial? I see… wait, I hope those weren't embarrassing things about me… was it?" Kyle's face looked really funny, his face was blushing out of fear that I was thinking of those… _moments._ Well, it wouldn't hurt to tease him a little bit…

"Oh, if you mean the time when we went to a friend's house for a sleepover and you wet your bed, then your friend blackmailed you that he'll show the picture of that to the girl you like if you don't follow him, and yet you didn't comply, then he really showed her that picture to her and you ended up being laughing stock of the gang, don't worry I wasn't thinking of that. I was only thinking of the time when we met and you were such a crybaby with snot flowing down your nose, and of course, that got on me..." I said everything straight out, stopping a few times to catch my breath. Meanwhile, Kyle looked as if everything in his world has ended.

"Hmmm? What are you guys talking about? Mind if I join in?" That familiar voice made Kyle's expression change from flustered to admiration. But, the second he realized what Amy was asking, his face turned to beet red.

I looked in front of Kyle's desk and saw Amy, smiling sweetly at us. I looked from Kyle to Amy and vice versa. Observing their expression, I finally realized it from Kyle's red face. _'I see, he likes Amy, huh?'_ I thought about it carefully, if he likes Amy, then I wonder who Amy likes. If she even has one that is.

Still, the thought of Amy liking someone struck my chest for a moment, making me confused. Anyway, focusing on the matter…

"Oh, do you want to join us? I have some really nice stories about Kyle here." I said with a mischievous look while pointing at Kyle with my thumb, of course, my weird look is directed to him too.

"Don't. You. Dare." He threatened me with a dark voice imitating a bad boy, to me though, it looked like a dog wanting to be fed by his master.

"Is that what you were talking about? Count me in~!" Amy cheerfully cried out.

Kyle's face looked horrible the second she said that, as if he just got out from watching a horror movie. His hand reached for Amy, as if he was trying to stop her. "I-I-I d-don't think my life i-is really… err- interesting, you know?" With a shaky voice, he tried to get her off.

I guess I kind of understand his feelings. Even I don't like it when someone reveals what I don't want them to know.

Still, Kyle's face looked really funny, so maybe I'll go on for just a little longer.

"Oh, come on. It's not that bad. Hey, Jin," she looked at me, "Why don't you fill in the gap?" Realizing what she meant, I coughed my voice loud enough for the three of us to hear. Kyle gave me his own glare.

Too bad, it didn't have any effect on me.

"… Why don't we start when we hang out for the first time?" I gave an innocent smile to both of them, Amy of course, smiled back, as for Kyle… his eye twitched, knowing that my smile was meant to irritate him.

"It was when-" Before I knew it, I was caught in a headlock by Kyle whose face was like a tomato. "Jin, if you really dare!" He threatened me in fear of me exposing his secrets. Both of us practically tell each other's problems no matter how much it hurt our pride. We have been together for a long time, after all.

It wasn't difficult to get out of his grip. All I had to do was pull his arm as hard – but not too hard – as I could. And Kyle, knowing that his build isn't that much, staggered forward. He grabbed the corner of my desk to remain balanced and fell to his knees afterwards.

"No fair, you know I'm weak at these types of things…" He said in a glum tone. He then leaned against my desk and folded his legs, his head was hung low. And from the aura he's giving off… he's sulking… He's definitely sulking.

I guess maybe I should stop on the teasing for now. Maybe I went overboard. I had too much fun.

"Hey." as I called for his attention, he looked at me with eyes that said 'The end' with 'What?' Looking at me with those eyes really made me feel horrible, and at the same time, stupid.

"I was only teasing you." I leaned my elbow on the desk and rested my cheek on my hand. He was silent for a moment, and then…

"Gahahaha!" He suddenly laughed like a mad man. I almost jumped at the sudden change of attitude. And the way he looks at me isn't really good either… "You finally gave up!" He shouted with an expression of relief while pointing at me with his index finger. He laughed again, loud enough for a few students to hear.

'_Gave up?'_ What does he mean? Gave up on what? On teasing him?

.

.

.

Yeah. I knew it. I knew I was being stupid. Why would I think Kyle would get depressed over something like that? I knew him for a long time so I should know that he would act like this. How can I be deceived so easily?

I looked over at Kyle who was holding his stomach; it was probably hurting from laughing too much.

I could feel my eye twitched. Seriously, is it really that funny? It's not like I felt embarrassed anyway, and yet this guy is laughing so loud that it was getting annoying.

"Hihihi" I heard Amy giggle at our reactions. And for some reason, her laugh sounded nostalgic. As if I've been waiting to hear it for a long time.

Ring. Ring. Ring. The bell rang afterwards, meaning homeroom was over.

* * *

After that, I went to the where the dorm is. The dorms are separated in elementary, middle school, and high school. It's also separated to girls and boys. The two buildings beside the one I saw earlier were part of the middle school building. The one on the left was for the middle school teachers –to think that even the teachers have their own building-, while the one on the right is for problem students.

I heard that that building holds students that have too many physical and emotional problems. Apparently, there is always a dispute over there. The persons who teach in there are also people who graduated from this school. I don't know what they look like though.

As I thought of the many things about this school that Kyle told me, I remembered that it's easy to get lost in here if you're a new student. I'm kind of glad that they even bothered to draw me a map.

I looked at the map Kyle and Amy gave me. They were also the ones who informed me that Introduction Day only has homeroom so that the students can check out their rooms after and get ready.

I laughed at their drawings. There's even a starting line in here and the finish line has the drawing of a house. There's also a chibi drawing of Amy and Kyle on top of the house. The one on the left is Amy and the one on the right is Kyle. Maybe they drew this so that I would know where the boy's dorm is.

Reaching the dorm was long enough. All I've seen on my way there are gardens and fountains. Not a single building on sight. And right now, I'm currently surrounded by green leaves and trees.

'_I'm… not lost… am I?'_ I nervously thought. I followed the direction they gave me and- _'Wait,'_ I carefully looked through the map again and tried to remember the directions I went. _'Oh. Man.'_ my eyes widened in realization. The reason why I haven't reached the dorm yet is because I was supposed to turn left instead of right when I reached the 2nd east teahouse –don't ask why there's a teahouse in here-.

I stopped from my tracks and dropped my hand from holding the map.

.

.

.

"Jin?" A seemingly gentle yet unsure voice called my name. I turned around and saw an unexpected face that I thought I hated – Ella.

She looked surprised when she saw me. I was too, of course. But then, I was more surprised at how she can say my name like she knew me. I just transferred here.

"What are you doing here?" Like what I imagined, her golden hair were as long and curly as ever, and the way her emerald glass beads look at me made me nervous.

I don't know how I should reply. After all, I'm lost but how should I say that to her without hurting my pride?

"Are you lost?" She asked me with one of her eyebrows up. I don't know how to professionally say yes so I just nodded.

"How did you even get lost? The way from the middle school building to the dormitory is straight, you know." Her high-pitched voice echoed in my head. I stared at her blankly. For a moment, I couldn't believe what she said, so I looked at the map. I carefully observed it. The directions according to the roads were: go right, left, right, right, continue forward, left, right, left, left…

That's when I finally understood. The path was straight, and yet the direction in here was complicated. _'Those two… I'm going to beat them up…'_ I thought with the image of Amy and Kyle appearing in my head.

"As usual… part of… hasn't changed…" Ella mumbled something as I thought that. But I could only hear a few words. Her voice sounded weak and her bangs created a shadow over her eyes, making it impossible for me to assume her feelings.

She noticed me staring at her and as fast as I could see; her face was plastered on with a happy smile. "Never mind." She gave me an innocent smile again. _'Never mind… that was her reply, like she knew that I heard what she just said…'_

"I still have some work to do. See you later!" She waved me off a goodbye. But before she was out of my sight, I shouted, "Hey, what's your name?" She noticed me and turned around; she smiled and said, "It's Ella Meyer!" She waved at me again and proceeded to go to the direction she was supposed to be.

'_Ella Meyer… that's really weird, because from what I remember, the teacher from back then said that her name was Ella Onizuka. There's no way that I could mishear it. I honestly feel like I'm confusing my own memories right now.'_

* * *

'_Finally, I finally reached the dormitory.'_ Sighing in relief, I looked at the tremendous size of the building shaped like a mansion. It was made of bricks and concrete. The exterior of the building was brown, the same for the girls'. The windows were large enough to cover the size of a child. Of course, the entrance was big but what I could not expect was that it was an automatic door, it was shaped like a normal door except that it was big, when I got near it, it suddenly opened; as if I pulled the door open myself.

I found it creepy at first, but then thought it was probably designed that way.

When I entered, I didn't expect it to be a big hallway. There were only plants around the corners, and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The path was split in left and right. Since I had no sense of direction, I was wondering where I should go.

I decided to take the left path and noticed that there was an elevator there. I gave an exhausted sigh and pressed the up button and waited for it to come down. The first floor seems to have nothing but staircases and elevators.

It finally came down; I entered it and almost screamed when I saw the numbers placed in the buttons.

'_11 floors… How in the world could eleven floors fit this place…? Crap.'_ I finally noticed, how was I supposed to find my room? This is why I hate schools like this.

I randomly pressed a button and ended up with the sixth floor. The room numbers in this floor were 221 up to 225. I thought that the difference was too much so I went to the second floor and noticed that my room wasn't here since the rooms here are 201 up to 205.

I scratched the back of my head. I really want to go and just rest now. I just got back from getting lost in that stupid forest and now I'm getting lost in the dorm? How could it get worse?

I went back to the elevator and pressed the number 3. When I looked at the room numbers, I feel like jumping for joy. The room numbers were 206 to 210. Basically, my room was here.

Still, the gaps between the rooms were tremendous. Meaning the rooms were large. I dismissed the thought and found my room. It was like the others. A simple brown door with the number carved in the wall above it.

I inserted my key which had the chain '207' in the keyhole. Turning it, the doorknob clicked and I entered my long awaited room.

I don't have energy to get mesmerized and observe the surrounding, so I just entered and just as I took my first step. Something flew by my right ear. It was gleaming… shiny… and sharp. A knife. A knife freaking flew by me. I slowly faced the knife that was deeply rooted in the wall from the force. I wonder why… but for some reason, this knife had a weird aura around it.

I looked at the room and saw someone sitting on a purple couch. He was holding a book, and his eyes were directed to me. His stare looked more like a death glare. And from the looks of it, he was reading the book while lying on the couch, and got up when he saw me.

"Who?" His voice was dark and poisonous. Hearing it would make you shiver or tremble in fear. "Who gave you permission to enter?"

I blinked. What did he mean by that? Please, no more. I have had enough of this day. I just want to rest, and now someone wants to kill me for entering my own room.

'_Why does everything have to happen to me?'_

* * *

Finally done, and don't worry, the next chapter will not be focusing on the first day. Chapter 1 to 6 is all about the first day after all.


	7. Beginning

In Rufus/Lupus/Luxus' name, I'm going to use Luxus since I'm more used to it. But, if you're not accustomed to it, just tell me and I'll gladly change it.

Oh, and just for you guys to know, I think I _**might**_ add supernatural stuff concerning the demon race.

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. The only ones I own are Kyle, Mica, Ella, Elaine, and Roald.**

XxXxXx

Chapter 7: Beginning

**Jin's POV/ 11:00 A.M.**

His glare intensified every second as I stood across him. His purple orbs bore to my red ones like a dagger. His seemingly dark, purple hair which accompanied his features of purple skin gave me the shivers. Everything about him was purple. _'Wait… purple skin?'_ I looked at his pale, lavender skin. _'Maybe he's sick?'_

Neither of us said anything. Heck, I don't know what I should say, or if I should even reply. I had no idea why he would just want to end my life like a small flea. But his question confused me. What did he mean by "Who gave you permission to enter?"? And why is he even here?

"I said," He called for my attention, which wasn't necessary as my thoughts were filled with his sudden discomfort, "who gave you permission to enter?" he repeated, his voice losing its previous venom and replaced with a bit of curiosity and amusement.

Not knowing how to professionally reply, I took the keys which was still in the keyhole and tossed it to him, which he caught easily with his free hand. He examined it slowly and carefully, he paused and looked at me for a second before examining it again.

He sighed and threw my keys back to me like it was garbage; of course, I caught it just as easy as he did. "Whatever." He lied down in the luxury couch and used the open book to cover his face, in which I took as a sign of accepting the fact that I'm his roommate.

I released a breath I didn't know I was holding and inspected the room; the room was painted peach or the color of the skin, and the floor was made of marble tiles. On the center was a round, glass table, and on top of it was a vase with white flowers. Accompanying it were two purple couches that give off the feeling of luxury, they were facing the table and almost sticking to each other. There was a flat-screen television leaning on the wall by my left. Underneath the set of table and couches was a blue mat. I expected there to be a chandelier but there wasn't, instead, there were lamps spread across the room. There were two windows equally distanced with each other opposite the door. Lastly, there were green plants on every corner.

There were two doors on each side of the wall. It was probably indicating the bathroom and the bedroom for each side, seeing it can hold two people in here –more like ten-. On the far left and the far right, there was a room but no door. I went to the one on the left first and noticed it was a kitchen, with all the utensils needed. The one on the right indicated it was a dining room.

If I have to give my opinion, if it wasn't for the dining room, kitchen, and table set, this room could be split into two. The only thing joining them together is the couches and table. It was probably because of the kitchen and the dining set that they combined this. They could have just combined the kitchen and the dining room together, anyway.

Since it looks like there are two bedrooms -across each other-, I was wondering where mine was. I looked at the sleeping roommate in the couch whose face is covered by the book. His right hand was underneath his head, giving support, while his left hand was resting on his chest.

It would probably be rude if I wake him up while he's sleeping, but it's better than barging in another's bedroom.

I scratched the back of my neck, which was then replied with a finger pointing to the first door on the left. I don't know how he knew that I was going to ask that, or if he was even sleeping and how he even knew that I scratched my neck when his face was covered with a book, I decided to dismiss the thought and enter the room –the one which the purple-haired guy pointed-.

The room was pretty normal other than the bed; there was a king-sized bed in the color of red in the upper-left corner of the room and beside it was a small desk with a bedside lamp. On the bottom-left, there were two shelves; the first one was filled with different kinds of books, from story books to professional. The shelf on the right was practically empty, probably for us to fill personally. Beside the desk and the bed were two windows, shaped in rectangle, big enough for a child with red curtains hovering over it, although for now, the curtain was tied to the side and the windows were open. On the upper-right was another desk, but bigger with a computer on top of it, there was also a laptop beside it, probably in case we go out. The bottom-right was the closet which was also red. There were two air-conditioners engulfed on the walls. Lastly, the floor was covered in one, big brown mat, with a red mat in the center, and the walls were painted light peach.

I inwardly laughed when I saw the closet, since I only brought my books and gauntlets with me. I opened it and expected nothing, but gaped when I saw the contents; my clothes were in there, including some others I don't own. There were also towels and personal things that I needed inside. There were four drawers below it, two on each side. I opened one and saw an envelope, addressed to me. I tore it open only for my eye to widen. There was money inside the envelope, enclosed with a letter.

_Dear Jin,_

_I'm sorry for sending you to Serdin High, which was just turned into a boarding school a year ago. I want you to experience life more, so I send you there. I put all your clothes and personal things in this closet after you went to school. Since I knew that you wouldn't have anything but books and your gauntlet. _

_I'm sure that you won't regret coming there. Even if this was short notice, I'm positive that you would thank me even if you're angry right now. Say hi to Amy and Kyle for me, okay sweetie? I love you! (:_

_-Elaine_

I sighed again for the umpteenth time. I'm kind of mad, but since I met Amy and reunited with Kyle, it's okay… I guess. It's not that bad.

Oh yeah, how did Elaine knew Amy and that Kyle was here? I met Amy in the fountain near here… and it didn't look like Kyle knew I was transferring. It's really suspicious of how she knew Amy. Seriously, I just met her. Did she tell Amy to be friends with me? But it didn't look like that since Amy looked surprised. _'Ugh… this is seriously giving me a headache.'_

My consciousness then drifted on the sentence written after. It said, _'P.S. I'll see you in a year. But then… you could visit me every weekend if you want to, unless you're mad.'_

I heaved another sigh. _'This day isn't getting any better. My feet are too tired from walking all the way here and trying to find my room. My eyes are also groggy from waking up early, and not to mention, my head aches pretty bad from that nap on the roof of my house. And then there's…'_

I paused momentarily, immediately being reminded of that memory. _'And then there's that dream…'_ Remembering it made my head hurt again. As if it was trying to stop me from remembering anything anymore regarding that.

And as if on cue, a ringing bell brought me back to my senses.

I wondered what it was for. I went out of my room to see my roommate still plopped on the couch. He didn't change positions. He was just like I saw him before.

The ringing never faltered. And I became tense. I thought that it may be an emergency or something, so I looked over the window and noticed people coming out of the dorm casually. The ringing then stopped.

I noticed this boy with orange hair; it was spiky and messy, like he wasn't even combing it, although it looked natural. He was with an indigo-haired boy. The reason my attention was to them was because the orange-haired boy said out loud, "Lunch time!" with a huge grin on his face.

'_Right. This is a boarding school which means we have our meal in here.' _I exhaled a sigh of relief, but then the bell rang again. It was like it was telling us that it will never stop until we came out.

I looked at the clock above the door and noticed that it was almost 11:30.

I heard someone groan, and looked to see my roommate groggily sitting up, his face looking more annoyed instead of angry. He then ruffled his hair in great annoyance and stood up, proceeding to leave the room. Since I don't know where the canteen is, I followed him.

* * *

I was walking side by side with my roommate. Right now, we're in an elevator to go down. Neither of us said anything, but I don't mind the silence. I'm really not in the mood right now because I haven't even got my nap. Not to mention, he almost killed me back then.

We reached the first floor and got out. We walked to the canteen, which is in between the boy's and the girl's dorm.

"The name's Dio." He suddenly spoke out of nowhere. I looked around to see who he was talking to. Technically, only a few were outside, and they were far away so… he must be talking to me.

"…I'm Jin." I didn't expect for him to actually start a conversation with me. "Nice to meet you." I held out my hand for a handshake. He hesitated for a minute, but then took it without even bothering to look at me and walked straight ahead.

We entered through a sliding door. The walls weren't made of cement or bricks, but see-through glasses, allowing you to observe the outside. The floor was tiled. The tables and chairs were equally distance with each other and the tables can only hold four, which is why some students grabbed a few chairs from some tables and placed it in their own table for them to sit on.

Dio walked away from me while waving a hand. I sighed again, but dismissed the thought. Right now, I had to find Kyle.

* * *

**Normal POV**

Dio found Lass –the silver-haired boy- and Luxus –the auburn-haired boy- sitting across each other on a table by the end of the room. They always tend to pick that place. Of course, no one dares to question them about it.

Dio sat beside Lass, noticing that they already reserved some food for him. He roughly picked up his spoon and fork and proceeded to eat. All of them didn't bother to greet, knowing that they always see each other.

"It's rare for you to be late." Luxus broke the silence and spoke, directing it to Dio. Dio paused for a second, but still continued eating. Luxus didn't mind Dio not answering, they were always like that.

After a while, Dio picked up the goblet filled with water and drank some of it. He grabbed the tissue beside the plate and wiped his mouth. "Something came up." He finally answered Luxus' question after about five minutes.

Now, it was Lass' turn to speak, "Something?" He asked with a flicker of interest in his eyes. Dio barely nodded, noticing Lass' eyes.

"Let me guess," Luxus interrupted them, which made both look at him, except that Dio closed his eyes after, knowing where this was going, "it's about that new student." He said after drinking half of the water in his glass in one gulp. "Am I right?" Rather than a question, what he said sounded more like a statement.

"What about him?" Lass turned to look at Dio who was deeply thinking about the time he threw a knife at him.

After a moment, Dio finally answered, "He's my new _**roommate**_." He said in a slightly dark tone yet amused one, emphasizing the word roommate.

Luxus' and Lass' eyes slightly widened at the sentence Dio just stated.

'_Roommate? You can't be serious.'_ Luxus thought, inwardly smirking.

'_Heh? So the academy finally grew up some courage to send someone for him? How pathetic this school is.'_ Lass snorted at the thought.

They sat in silence while Dio was finishing his meal. Dio was eating more polite and gentle than before, considering that he always eats fast but mannered in every meal and he was always the first one to finish. This made Luxus and Lass conclude that Dio was bothered by something. And that that something has to do with the new student.

Dio folded his arms and thought about the time he threw the knife at Jin. **Dio immediately sat up after hearing the door open.** **A red-headed boy came in, his eyes showing exhaustion and annoyance. **_'That time…'_ **Dio didn't hesitate and threw a knife at the person as fast as lightning, just enough to scratch his cheek.** _'Jin…, huh?'_ **The boy cocked his head to the side; quickly avoiding the damage Dio intended to give to him as a warning.**_ 'The way he dodged it was perfectly natural…'_ **Then, the boy's eyes became surprised as he looked at the knife.** _'He didn't even notice that he dodged it.'_

Luxus looked at Dio and thought, _'If that transfer got Dio thinking about him, he might be strong…'_ Luxus slightly smirked, which interrupted Dio's thoughts and made him look at Luxus.

Dio sighed. He stood up and said, "I'm leaving. I need my nap." Lass and Luxus gave him a half-nod as a reply.

* * *

**Jin's POV/ 11:35 A.M.**

I found Kyle sitting in a table beside the window. I waved my hand to him and sat across. There was already a meal set aside for three. "Hey, Jin. 'Sup?" He greeted me as I rested my cheek on my hand and gazed outside the window; there were tables outside too, and a few students. Some were even eating under the shade of a tree.

"Nothing, really. Just wondering why they kicked me out from home." I said nonchalantly.

Kyle laughed. "Hey, just because they enrolled you here doesn't mean they kicked you out, right?" He gave an amused laugh while I sighed again. "Besides," he added, "you got to see me and Amy so it's not all that bad right?"

'_He has a point. I did manage to see them but that doesn't mean that they can just make me go here without even consulting me.'_

"Hey guys!" Amy greeted us from afar as she ran towards us, apologizing to the people she accidentally hits.

She sat beside me and giggled. I greeted her but immediately regretted it when I saw Kyle glaring at me._ 'What's his problem?'_ Kyle grumpily picked up his fork and spoon and proceeded to eat, his eyebrows furrowed.

'_What a weird guy.'_

* * *

We finished our meal and left the plates there. Kyle and Amy said that the janitor will clean it up anyway. For now, we were walking to the park –don't ask how a park is in here-. The path's side was full of grasses and flowers, and there were many trees around too. Nature seems to have taken its toll here. There weren't any roads here, nothing.

To be honest, I want to take a nap to rid of this headache but Kyle and Amy said that going to the park will make me feel better.

"So," Kyle broke the silence –Kyle was to my right and Amy was to my left- "Jin, what are you going to wear?" I stopped walking and looked at Kyle.

"What am I going to _**wear**_?"

"Yeah." He nodded at my question.

"…"

"…"

"He means the party." Amy explained.

I blinked. "What party?" Kyle and Amy stared at me for a while. Then, Kyle smacked his fist on his palm as if he figured something out.

He scratched the back of his head and chuckled. "Sorry, I guess I kind of forgot to tell you about it. Hehe."

"I thought I told you not to forget things like that." Amy placed her hands on her waist and scolded Kyle. Kyle avoided it by whistling and wandering his eyes.

"Anyways," Amy looked at me, "since you guys mentioned the party, do you mind accompanying me to go shopping? I need to buy clothes, too." She said both to me and Kyle. Her voice sounded more alluring and sweet than normal, which made me wonder.

'_I don't have anything to do anyway, and this headache seems to have disappeared already, so…'_

"I guess it's-!" My sentence was interrupted because Kyle pinched my hand really hard, where Amy can't see.

"What's your-!" Kyle covered my mouth to prevent me from continuing. "Uhh… Jin and I need to have a manly talk over there, so if you will excuse us!" He dragged me to a nearby tree, far enough for Amy not to hear us.

I removed his hand from my mouth and exclaimed, "What's with you, Kyle?!"

He placed his hands in front of his chest for protection. "Hey, no need to be so grumpy. I just saved you so you should be thanking me." He grinned and showed me a thumbs-up.

"Saved me? And how did you _**save**_ me?" I said through gritted teeth.

"You seriously want to accompany her to go shopping? I won't stop you but if you do that, you'll go through hell." He said dramatically.

"What?" My anger was gone and replaced by confusion. "Go through hell? And why is that?"

Kyle placed his hand over my shoulder and sighed. "Jin, you're still young. If you do that, you might…"

I sweat-dropped at his actions. "You talk like I'm going to die." I removed his hand from my shoulder. "It's not like I'm a soldier who suddenly raised his death flag, idiot." I said to him dumbly.

"But Jin-!" He frantically shook me like he was trying to awaken me from a dream. Since the force was too much for my head, that stupid headache came back. _'Even if I wanted to go, I can't because of this stupid headache!'_

"Look," I removed his hands from me, "even if I wanted to go, there's no way I can because you made me sick again…!" I angrily explained to him like I was talking to a kid.

His mouth formed into an 'o'. "Oh… I see… That's great then!" He gestured his arm to wipe some sweat from his forehead.

"Great…? How is that supposed to be great…?!" My patience was really running low now. I have really short fuse. And it only got worse because of this pain in my head.

I sighed again. "Nevermind, I need to rest." I waved a hand to him and proceeded to walk back where we came from. I passed by Amy who gave me a confused look. I replied to her by showing a weak smile. "Sorry Amy… I think I really need to rest…" The pain in my head just keeps getting worse. The more I talk to her… the more the pain lingers. And I don't even know why.

Amy had a worried expression on her face. "Okay… just walk straight ahead and you'll find your way back." I half-nodded and walked away.

Just before I lost sight of them, I looked back and saw Amy and Kyle briefly talking. I couldn't hear them very well, but I was certain it was serious based on their expression. The thinking made the pain get worse. I don't know why, but seeing them like that made me feel nauseous for some reason.

I didn't want to think anymore so I quickly followed the path and walked quickly despite the pain in my head.

I reached the dorms and immediately went straight to my room. I noticed that Dio was sleeping in the couch like earlier, except that he was not wearing his school uniform. Instead, he was wearing a white shirt –a shirt with a picture of a purple-haired girl in it, she also had the same skin tone as him- with some kind of long-sleeved purple fabric underneath it. He was wearing blue shorts.

I went straight to my room and plopped on my huge bed. In normal cases, I have really high stamina and headaches like this were pretty normal to me. But this time was different. The pain is draining away my energy.

I sighed. I closed my eyes, hoping that sleeping will make me feel better.

**I slowly opened my eyes to see a different scenery from what I would have expected. I was in a town; people were flocking everywhere here and there. Some of the stores would have someone giving away fliers. There were plants and trees in every side. The road was not cemented, it was just the earth. No cars would also pass by like those in the cities.**

'_**Where am I?'**_

"**Over here!" I heard a voice, a girl perhaps. I looked at their direction and saw her; a girl with rose-pink hair and chocolate eyes. Her hair was pulled into a twin-tail. There were two boys following her. He had brown-hair with matching eyes. The other one had red-hair and eyes that reminded me of a ruby. They were probably grade-schoolers.**

**The two boys were carrying many heavy brown bags, and they look exhausted. **_**'Huh?'**_** The red-haired boy looked awfully familiar, and then it hit me. **_**'Ah, could he be me? I saw him in my dream earlier morning. Oh, and that pink-haired girl must have been the girl from that time.'**_** I thought, remembering my dream earlier. **_**'But then…'**_** I focused my eyes on the brown-haired boy. **_**'Who is he? He seems awfully familiar, too. And I don't even know that pink-haired girl's name yet.'**_

"**Look, look! Isn't that cute?" The girl said while looking at a red spaghetti strap dress displayed in front of the glass. "Let's buy it!" She happily exclaimed.**

"**EEEHHH?!" The two boys groaned simultaneously. "You still want to buy some more?" The brown-haired boy complained. He fell to his butt on the ground and dropped the bags. The red-haired boy -I mean me- sighed. "Don't you think this is more than enough? It will probably take a while for you to finish wearing all of this." I –my tiny version- reasoned to escape. **

**Both of the boys nervously looked at the girl, hoping that that would be enough to get out. I silently laughed at them. They look like a funny trio.**

**Still, what is this anyway? Why am I seeing this? And why is my child version there? I don't even remember any of this.**

**Just then, the picture froze again, preventing me from thinking further. The background became blank, and a strong wind gushes over. Unlike last time, I couldn't feel the wind.**

**Then, a mirror appeared before me. I thought at first that it reflected me, but to my surprise, it didn't. Instead, my child version was there. His eyes were different from before. His face had no emotion, and his eyes stared at me blankly; void of anything.**

"**You…" His mouth moved, as if he was talking to me. "Who are you?" I was shocked that he was talking to me, but I was more surprised at his question.**

"**Who… am I…? I replied, being careful of what I'm saying.**

"**Who are you?" He repeated in the same tone as before.**

**He observed my actions carefully, and I did the same. Then, his eyes darkened, and his mouth formed into a smirk. "You know nothing…" I blinked at his sentence.**

"…**What?" I slowly asked. I couldn't decipher his meaning. Know nothing… I know nothing of what?**

"**Your past… Everything… You know nothing… but the present…" **

**I gulped. I'm beginning to get uneasy and I could feel the sweat slip down my forehead. **_**'What is he saying?'**_

"**Doesn't it hurt…?" He began to talk again, his voice was getting darker and I could get the hint of sorrow and anger in his voice. "Not knowing your past… not even knowing your parents… not knowing me…" He slightly hissed at the last part.**

**My eyes widened from shock. **_**'What the h*ll is he talking about? My past…? What about it? Now that he mentions it… I don't exactly remember anything from my childhood… I heard some from Elaine, but… is that really enough?'**_

**I stared at my hands in doubt. They were shaking. And I could tell that he wasn't lying. His face was blank, but his eyes are serious.**

'_**No… I can't be swayed by him…! I…'**_** My thoughts were filled with doubt and for some reason, sadness.**

"**My past…" I mumbled, just enough for the both of us to hear. "What is my past…?" I asked him filled with worry and doubt. Fear and anger overflowed within me.**

"**You will know… when the time comes…" His voice started to vanish, and his image became a blur. That's when I realized that he was going away.**

"**Wait!" I desperately tried to call him back. I wanted to know my past, everything. My parents… I want to know them. Just who are they?**

**But, he did not heed my call. The sentence 'you will know when the time comes' repeated over and over again until he vanished completely.**

"Ugh!" I abruptly sat up. My breathing was sharp and abnormal. I was also sweating a lot, to the point where I needed to take off my clothes.

"A dream?" I looked around and noticed that it was already dark. The room was like before. I could hear the clock ticking every second, so my attention drifted to it. The clock was glowing in the dark it seems. It was an alarm clock beside the bedside lamp and it read 11: 50.

It was barely midnight, and I was still awake. I looked over the open window. The sky was dim and filled with stars. It seems to be full moon right now. I sighed and closed the window.

It was a bit cold, so I looked over at the air-conditioner and noticed it was on even though I didn't touch it. _'Must be automatic.'_

I opened my closet and took out clothes for me to sleep on. I also took a towel. I needed a shower right now. I understand it's weird to take a bath at midnight, but I'm already used to it since I always sweat a lot from training.

I opened the door and went to my bathroom. Before that, I noticed a figure by the window. It was probably Dio. He was wearing the same clothes as earlier. He didn't notice my presence, but I could feel an aura of sadness illuminating him.

I stared at his unmoving back. I couldn't see his face, so I shook the thought off and went to the bathroom.

There was a bathtub and a sink, also a shower. I decided to take a shower, since I wasn't used to a bubble bath or something of the riches.

I slowly took off my clothes and dumped them in the basket near the sink. I turned the faucet and let the water flow down my body and damp my hair.

My thoughts went back to my dream earlier. _'I know nothing of my past, huh?'_ I quickly washed my face and brushed my teeth. I picked up the towel and wiped the droplets of water flowing down my body. I quickly put on my clothes which are a red shirt and baggy pants. I placed the towel over my damp hair.

I left the bathroom. Dio was nowhere to be found, so he was probably in his room now. I went back to my own room, still drying my hair.

I yawned and removed the towel. I sat onto my bed and fell on my back. _'This day was more tiring than the rest… I hope tomorrow will go well.'_ With that, I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"Ring. Ring. Ring." My mind's consciousness registered the sound of a bell ringing. That might be enough to wake my mind up, but not enough to actually wake me up.

I flipped over and tucked my head underneath the pillow to get rid of the noise. To my pleasure, it worked just fine.

"Ring. Ring. Ring." There it went again, but this time, the sound was louder. Even though the pillow was supposed to be protecting me from the noise, it more looked like it doubled the ringing.

I groaned and sat up while rubbing my eyes. I glared at the alarm clock before me. I didn't even set it last night. _'Automatic.'_ I rolled my eyes. I used my fist and slammed it down the button on the alarm clock.

The loud ringing didn't stop, which made me wonder. I realized that it was from the whole building.

"Huh?" I looked carefully at the alarm clock. It read 6:52 A.M. "8 minutes to get ready…" I yawned and drifted back to sleep.

.

.

.

"Wait." I immediately sat up and looked at the alarm clock again. The tick-tock it made registered in my brain, especially the time.

"Crap."

I hurriedly tossed the covers in my bed and got my school uniform from the closet –don't ask how it became clean, because I don't know either- and went to the bathroom. The clothes I tossed in the basket last night wasn't there, so I was assuming it was cleaned by who knows and the school uniform I'm holding right now is from last night. _'No time to worry about it.'_

I took a quick shower, roughly cleansing my body. I brushed my teeth really quick and hard. I washed my face and wiped myself off with a towel. I quickly put on my school uniform and got out the bathroom.

My roommate wasn't there, so I was assuming he left without me. _'What a nice roommate.'_ I rolled my eyes at the sarcasm. I looked at the clock and saw that there was barely a minute to get breakfast.

Yes, basically, I'm hurrying to eat. Kyle told me when we were eating lunch yesterday that breakfast starts at 7:00, lunch at 11:30, and dinner at 6:00. He also told me that if you were late –this only applies for breakfast-, they would not serve you any food. It was probably so that students won't be tardy. Still, they seriously apply that strictness so I have to hurry. (When concerning lunch, we eat here on weekends or holidays, but when we have school, we eat at the main building since it'll take too long if we walk from the building to the canteen.)

It'll take too long to wait for the elevator, so I went down by stairs. I ran as fast as I could and reached the canteen. I looked at the clock and it looks like I barely managed to get here.

I sighed and rested for a few seconds to catch my breath.

"Barely made it, I see." The cafeteria lady told me as I went over to get my food. I gave her a weak nod.

I didn't mind if I couldn't find Kyle and Amy, so I ate by myself.

* * *

"Okay, as you guys know, tomorrow is the party." Lime cheerfully told the whole classroom. The students cheered and the room was full of chatters.

Lime clapped her hands to get their attention. "Tomorrow will be the official opening of 'Introduction Day', the party will be held at the ceremony hall, so wear formal attires, okay?" Lime informed us and gracefully left the classroom. Before she did, she added, "If you do not have formal attires, just wear your real school uniform." She finally left.

"Finally!" Kyle exclaimed beside me. He stretched his arms and he laid it on the back of his chair. He tilted his head and closed his eyes. Then, he looked at me and leaned his arms on his desk. "This is the party we were talking about." He gave me a toothed grin.

"Party, huh?" I mumbled to myself and sighed.

"Why so sad, Jinny? Do you not like parties?" Amy said in front of us. She leaned her arms over her chair to talk with us.

I sighed at the new nickname but Amy just giggled.

"What are you going to wear, Jin?" Kyle interrupted us.

"School uniform?" I said unsurely. I don't own those sleek, black coats or those tuxedos anyway.

"Oh, you mean 'that'? Our school uniform is pretty slick, isn't it? Maybe I'll wear that too…" He muttered to himself.

"You mean this?" I pointed my finger to my clothes. "How is this 'pretty slick'?" I asked him doubtfully.

"Huh?" Kyle looked at me. Then, his mouth formed into an 'o'. "I forgot again…" He nervously chuckled.

"Again?" Amy disappointedly said to Kyle and lightly hit her forehead with her palm.

I was confused as to what are they talking about. But I could tell that it was important.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell him." Kyle snickered and directed his attention to me.

"In other words, 'that'," He pointed to my school uniform, "isn't our real uniform."

I blinked. "What?"

"I said, 'that' isn't our real school uniform. Ours is much cooler." He leaned on his chair and closed his eyes.

"If this isn't our real uniform, then what is?"

"It should be in your closet, a uniform with an emblem of Serdin High." Amy informed me.

'_Now that they told me, there were clothes I don't recognize in my closet.'_ I thought to myself.

"We have uniforms for every season. In spring, fall and winter, we wear long-sleeve coats, but the texture will differ by the season. In summer, we wear a simple polo shirt and a necktie. Since it's fall, we'll be wearing coats with the Serdin High emblem. It's not really a coat, but it's really pretty." Amy clarified with a smile.

"Oh, Jin," Kyle interrupted us again, "I'll introduce you to some of my friends tomorrow, 'kay?" He told me with a smile. His smile had a weird aura, which made me think. Amy looked at him and pouted.

"I'll introduce you to my friends, too. Okay, Jin?" Amy sweetly smiled and offered to me. I carefully observed them. They were acting suspiciously.

Seeing that I won't lose anything, I nodded to both of them.

They cheered at the same time which made me half-smile.

"By the way," I started, "why do we have to wear this if our uniform is what Amy said?" I finished with a dumbfounded look on my face.

Kyle and Amy looked at each other before chuckling. "They said they wanted to give the school a fresh look. I don't see how this can be fresh though." Kyle showed me a smile which was warm yet funny.

* * *

I opened the closet. I carefully looked over the clothes and finally found it; it was a long-sleeved black coat with two columns of buttons. It had a pocket by the left chest and engulfed in the pocket was a gold, metal-like substance that read 'SH' in the font of Algerian. Beneath the coat was a simple, white polo shirt with a collar –of course-. There was also a red necktie tied around the hanger. I noticed that something was tagged behind the cloth. It read 'Fall'.

'_This must be it.'_ I noticed other clothes that looked like this too, except that the material was a bit different. There were jet black slacks that I wasn't familiar with, too.

I sighed. I have to meet up with Kyle tomorrow to find out where that 'Ceremony Hall' is supposed to be.

'_Still,'_ I remembered the time I walked to get back here. After homeroom ended, I quickly got out the classroom to check out the uniform. On my way back, people would look at me weirdly. Some would have a surprised expression, while others would have an amazed one. Some were even talking behind my back. I could here a few of what they were saying:

"Is that the new student?"

"Wow, he must be brave to come here."

"Idiot, he must not know the rumors."

"I heard that Dio is his roommate. Could you believe that?"

"Seriously? But he doesn't have a scratch on his cheek!" _'Scratch on my cheek? What for?'_

And then it will spread like that. I don't think they noticed me hearing them. But I didn't even want to interfere with them. Rumors like that, I was already used to it.

I sighed and placed the clothes back in the closet.

I got out of my room and saw Dio reading a book on the couch. It was different from the other one he had before.

"Hey." I greeted him. He looked up from his book and half-nodded.

I sat beside him. I placed my elbows on my knees and held my hands together with my chin resting on my hands. I release an exhausted sigh. I could feel his eyes look at me for a second, but I pretended not to notice it.

"Hey, Dio," I started, "Do you know the rumors around this school?" Although I said that I didn't want to interfere, I asked anyway.

I looked over at Dio to observe his expression. The only thing different was he was wearing a bittersweet smirk.

"Rumors…, huh?" He said as if he remembered something nostalgic. I looked at him and waited for an answer.

"You enrolled here and yet you didn't know it? Your parents must be stupid." He rolled his eyes.

I looked at him confusingly. Normally, I would've been offended, but since I don't exactly have _**parents **_–even though I consider Elaine as one-, I didn't mind it. Still, anyone would get angry if someone said that to their family, even if they don't have one. _'I wonder why I didn't get angry…'_ To be honest, I felt bitter yet happy. Weird, right?

Dio noticed my expression. "So you have no parents. I see." Dio looked back to his book; he was holding it with one hand while using his thumb to flip the pages.

"I don't know if it's real, so listen carefully, human." I blinked at his sudden change.

"To put it simple, the people think that the students who enroll here will be cursed or have tremendous bad luck."

"Huh?" I sweat-dropped at his information. _'That's it? They're making a big fuss over that? And here I thought a series of murders happened or something.'_ I sighed again.

"Is that all?" I asked with a bit of disappointment on my face.

Dio looked at me weirdly. "You should be careful, you mere mortal. Because it really happened to some. This school was even nicknamed 'School of Misery and Misfortune'." Maintaining his cool attitude, he went back to his room.

Before fully closing the door, he added, "Even if the rumors weren't real… those things happen in reality…, you silly human." His voice drifted off and you could tell he remembered something horrible. It only changed back to normal when he said 'you silly human'.

I sighed. _'School of Misery and Misfortune, huh? I think I have had enough misfortune already.'_

* * *

It was finally time for the party. The party started at 6:00 p.m. sharp. They said it was fun at night, which is why the part starts after dinner –even though we didn't eat.

Kyle and Amy guided me to the 'Ceremony Hall'.

I was only wearing our school uniform –the real one- while Kyle was wearing a suit and black slacks.

Amy was wearing a pink dress; it had frills in it and its sleeves reached her elbows. It was a V-neck too. Dark-pink ribbons were scattered it. There was also a red belt around its waist that made the dress more astounding.

Amy's hair was neatly tied into a ponytail, with a few strands falling over her ears and her bangs were placed to the side by a cat-shaped pin. She was wearing 2-inch high pink sandals too.

'_Amy looks…'_ I gulped, _'really cute…'_ I felt my neck getting hot. I shook my head frantically to rid of the thought.

We entered the place and it was beautifully decorated; tons of huge chandeliers were scattered around the top. The walls had those decorations which were garlands that were loosely hanged and repeatedly pinned to the wall. There was a banquet in the middle of the room. There was also a stage in front with lots of chairs accompanying it.

People were gathering here and there. Most of them were wearing formal attires. To be more precise, _**all**_ of them were wearing formal attires except for me.

'_Is this how the rich spend their money? A party which is simply an 'Opening Ceremony' in other schools? …Can this get much worse?'_

"All right! Finally, we're here!" Kyle exclaimed. It was a bit far from the dorms, but the walk was pretty nice.

"Yay~! Let's go Jin!" Amy grabbed my wrist and proceeded to drag me away.

"Hey, hold it!" Kyle grabbed my sleeve which stopped us from our tracks.

"Huh?" Amy looked at Kyle who stopped us.

"No way, Amy. I suggested that he meets my friends first." He pointed his finger to two people having a conversation with each other.

"But, I got to him first." Amy pulled me and we were walking again against my will.

We were stopped again by Kyle. "Now that I'm here, I say that, me first!" He argued and pulled me too.

"No!" Amy pulled me by my wrist abruptly.

"Let go!"

"You let go!"

"Will you guys please?! I'm the one getting hurt here!" My wrist hurts because Amy was pulling it hard, and my sleeve would rip if Kyle continues to pull me like that. To be honest, it looked like we're playing tug-o-war except that I'm the rope.

"But, Jin!" Both of them exclaimed at once.

Their grip softened and I pulled my hands from them. I soothed my wrist and looked at my left sleeve. I was glad it didn't rip.

"What are you guys fighting for anyway? You're just introducing me to your friends, right? Why are you two fighting over something like that? Unless you're hiding something..." I observed them carefully. The both of them stiffened the second I said that they might be hiding something.

"Okay, now that we're all here, shall we start?" A voice on a microphone said. The students gathered to the sea of chairs and sat down.

"We'll finish this later." Amy declared to Kyle.

"Suits me." Kyle agreed.

I sighed at their behavior. "Let's just go."

We sat in the middle. There were many people I don't recognize too, and most of them were wearing stern faces. I assumed that they might be from the other building beside the main building.

'_Problem students…' _

"Welcome to Serdin High. Although most of you already know this place… This party is for the welcoming of you guys becoming 2nd-years in middle school. This year, we intend to-" The person kept rambling about the rules and regulations, the places you should know, and boring things like that.

Some of the students were already yawning and some were not even listening. After a while, most of the students were already chattering, as if no one was listening anymore. _'Not that I mind.'_

"You arrogant students!" A voice screamed from the microphone. "Don't be so cocky just because you've become 2nd years!" It was a girl, no, a woman it seems. It was the person speaking; she has blonde hair and piercing red eyes.

The room became silent. I figured they became terrified from her. In fact, I never even expected her to scream like that.

* * *

The speech was done, and we were allowed to do whatever we want as long as we don't cause trouble.

Both of them agreed that Kyle goes first and Amy second –I didn't even get a saying in this.

Kyle led me to the side. There, I saw two people; one was with lilac hair and lavender eyes, while the other had cerulean hair, her eyes were different though; her right eye was blue, and her left eye was red.

"Hey." Kyle greeted the both of them. Both turned to look at us.

"Hey, Kyle." The girl with lavender eyes greeted him. "And hello to you, too!" She giggled at my presence. _'This girl is cheerful.'_

"Hi…" The girl with different eyes greeted both of us in a quiet murmur. _'She must be the quiet type…'_

"This guy is Jin." He introduced me. I nodded to the both of them.

"This is Arme," he pointed to the lilac-haired girl, "and this is Mari." He pointed to the cerulean-haired girl.

"You're the new student, right? It's very nice to meet you." Arme held out her hand for a handshake and I gladly took it.

"Nice to meet you…" Mari told me quietly. _'She doesn't look happy to meet me at all.'_

"Don't worry about her. She's just not used to talking to a new acquaintance." Arme eased me.

"Jin!" I heard a familiar voice call my name. I turned around to the voice' direction -Amy. She reached me and grabbed me by my arm like we're a couple. The thought made something in my chest thump, but I don't know why.

"Let's go already." She told me as if we were going on a date. The thought made something in my chest thump, but I don't know why.

"Hold it!" Kyle stopped us like last time by grabbing my sleeve. _'I seriously think my sleeve is going to rip…'_

"It's been barely a minute and you're already taking him away? That's totally not fair!" Kyle argued.

"We never agreed about the time. I said that you go first, and I go second. Meaning, I could take Jin anytime I want as long as you've already introduced them to him." Amy giggled while Arme looked at her amusingly.

At times like this, Kyle could debate properly, but since it's Amy…

'_Oh yeah, Kyle is acting normally around Amy even if he likes her. He… must really like her a lot.'_

Amy stuck out her tongue like a child. For some reason, she really looked cute like that.

Amy dragged me away from them. Kyle was ruffling his hair in annoyance and mumbling something like "She planned this…!" over and over again.

"Let's talk again another time, Jin!" Arme yelled as I was being pulled by Amy. I nodded to her and hoped she saw it. I got my answer when she smiled.

* * *

"They're my friends." Amy introduced –even though I knew them already- me to someone I really know. They were Ella and Mica.

"Jin, it's you." Mica greeted me with a smile. Her blue eyes looked at me happily, which made me look away because I didn't want her to see my red face.

"Oh. Hey, Jin." Ella greeted me too, her emerald glass beads boring into my ruby ones.

"You already know them?" Amy asked me, a cheerful smile carved on her face.

"Of course he does. We live together after all." Mica said to Amy without hesitation.

"You live together? That's gre-… What?!" Amy grimaced at the sentence. Her face was filled with fury and… another expression I couldn't clearly tell.

"Seriously? But you guys are just 14." Ella frowned at Mica. _'Why are they making such a huge fuss about this?'_

Then, a thought came to my mind. _'Don't tell me… they think we're lovers.'_ The thought made me happy, but I didn't want them to misunderstand, especially Amy –which made me confused…

"We're not 'that'. Her parents took me in." I scratched the back of my head as I said that, slightly regretting my words.

Amy and Ella looked really relieved for some reason. I looked over at Mica and saw her usual calm face. I sighed and felt a little disappointed. _'I at least want her to be a little... sad?'_

* * *

I walked over to the huge table that held all kinds of food. I studied everything on the table and picked some kind of bread. I ate it and let the delicious wheat roll on my tongue.

"…Jin." Someone was tugging the back of my uniform, and I looked over to see it was Amy. Her cheeks were bright red and her chocolate eyes looked weary.

She held out a goblet with some kind of drink. "Drink it…!" She hiccupped the moment she said that.

I blinked and pressed my palm on her forehead. She didn't have a fever… which means…

"Amy, are you drunk?" I questioned her with a disbelieving look on my face.

I mean, seriously, we're not even close to 18. We're only 14 and barely turning 15. How could they drink alcohol? More like, why is this school even allowing them- or us to drink?

Suddenly, an arm was slung on my shoulder. I turned my head to who it was and found the same orange-haired guy I saw two days ago.

He showed me a goofy grin and held out the same drink Amy wanted to give me earlier. "Come on! Just a -hic- sip!" He was moving drowsily, making me conclude that he was very drunk.

"I don't really…" I tried to get away from him without getting him hurt, but I couldn't because his arm, even though it didn't look like it was holding me, had a firm grip.

"Oh, Ryan's ma' name. Nice to -hic- meet ya'!" He looked like he was forcing himself to smile, but failed miserably. Since he even bothered to greet me, might as well go along.

"Jin. Nice to meet you too." I showed him a helpless smile saying 'please get off me'.

"You're the new guy, right? We know ya' already, no need ta' be reserved." His accent was somewhat friendly. I couldn't help but sigh since he didn't get my meaning.

"Ryan, get off him. He doesn't look like he really wants to drink anyway." Another voice came out of nowhere. I looked around and saw that it was the indigo-haired boy Ryan was with.

"Oh come on, Ronan. Don't be such a party-pooper. You should drink too." The boy named Ronan sighed and gave me an apologizing look.

"Sorry about him. He's always like that, please don't mind him." He smiled to me like a noble. _'He looks like those gentleman type of guys…'_

"Anyways, my name's Ronan, as you've heard. You're Jin, correct? You're quite famous." He held his hand out for a handshake, which I gladly took.

'_Me? Famous? The world must be ending.'_

"Ryan, get off Jinny!" Amy tried to pry Ryan's arm off me, which made me stumble a little. She failed though.

'_Jinny? Can this get much worse?'_

"We're just having a friendly chat!" Ryan recoiled -still drunk- as Amy successfully got his arm off from me.

"Come on, Ryan." Ronan dragged Ryan away from us.

Ryan sulked at first, but then he grinned at me and shouted, "Let's hang out sometime…!" before Ronan fully took him off.

"Right…" I tried to laugh at the situation to make it seem less awkward, but I failed as I only showed a nervous chuckle.

"Jin… let's dance…" Amy smiled at me with her cheeks burning red.

I could hear loud music playing in the speakers, until it changed, so I was assuming we were having a slow dance.

I couldn't deny her since her eyes were practically begging me. "Sure."

Amy's face lit up in delight as she led me to the dance floor.

"…Amy, I don't know how to… dance." I tried to tell her, but she just ignored me.

She placed her hand on my shoulder, and the other with my hand. I placed my other hand on her waist, trying to follow what the others were doing.

We followed the rhythm of the song. I was amazed at how she could dance so gracefully even though she's drunk. She smiled at me with her eyes still looking droopy.

I smiled back, until she giggled.

Thump. Thump.

'_Huh?'_

Thump. Thump.

'_What is…?'_

Thump. Thump. I could feel my heartbeat racing the second she released that weak yet carefree laugh.

Thump. Thump. _'What the h*ll?'_

* * *

The party ended sooner than expected. Now, all of us were walking back to our dorms.

"See you tomorrow, guys." Amy waved both to me and Kyle a goodbye and ran off to her dorm before we could even reply.

Kyle and I walked side by side until he broke the silence. "Hey, Jin. Who's your roommate?"

"It's Dio." I told him tiredly. I noticed Kyle stopped walking.

I looked back at him to see his eyes wide. "Seriously? Him?" I nodded, not bothered by his tone.

"I thought he doesn't like roommates…" He quietly muttered to himself, but I heard it anyway.

We entered the elevator. Kyle's room was on the fifth, whilst mine was on the third.

"What about you?" I asked him to change the topic.

"Oh. I don't have one. I personally asked the principal for it."

"I see." _'The rich's power…'_

The door opened on the third floor. I waved Kyle a goodbye and walked to my room.

Dio was sitting on the couch again, reading a book. He didn't bother to look at me even though I knew he heard the sound of the door opening.

I shook my head and entered my room. I picked up a change of clothes and went to the bathroom to take a quick shower. _'These three days have been… interesting.'_ I thought as I let the water embrace me.

'_I wonder if there will be something more than this… and that dream too…'_

I turned off the faucet and wiped myself off. I changed and went back to my room. I tucked myself under the covers and closed my eyes.

'_Tomorrow is the official start of school… And…'_ I trailed off my thoughts, suddenly realizing that Amy just showed up in my head.

I shook my head frantically, trying to rid of it. _'That was… just my imagination… There's no way that I…'_ I blushed at the thought and rolled to the side.

I sighed and forced my brain to sleep.

* * *

This is probably the longest chapter I have written or will write.

Even I could tell that the story is getting boring. Anyways, this might be the end of Jin's POV for now. Basically, this is the end of the prologue. (:

There are confusing events in here and don't worry, I know them all.

Feel free to say anything. Sarcasm or harsh comments are fine as long as it might help me.

Thank you for reading! (If some of you does read this…)

_-LoveBuildsHate_


	8. Rain

Thank you Rikushido, for that awesome review! (Not exactly a review but… never mind)

In my story, this is the schedule of their school year:

September, October and November – school

December – break

January, February and March – school

April – break

May, June and July – school

August – break

Let's just say that for now, there won't be humors, it will probably be in the next chapter or so… It's fine if you don't like it actually. Anyways, again, thank you for reading!

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. The only ones I own are Kyle, Mica, Elaine, Ella, and Roald.**

* * *

Chapter 8: Rain

**Normal POV**

Jin yawned, groggily sitting up on his bed. Today is his official first day of school.

He turned off the ringing alarm clock that he set last night. He rubbed his eyes and fuzzily walked over to his closet. He noticed that the clothes he wore last night were already cleaned and hanged in there. _'I guess I'll ask Kyle later about that.'_

He walked out of his bedroom and heard the sound of water crashing down on the ground in the other bathroom. He figured it was Dio, and went to his own bathroom himself.

He took a quick shower and brushed his teeth. He grabbed the towel he got from the closet and wrapped it below his waist, his upper body being bare.

He went back to his room and again, opened the closet. He took out the clothes he wore last night and felt the smooth fabric on his palm.

He carefully wore it, making sure that he did it properly like last time. He looked at the mirror in glued on the closet. _'That's good.'_

He grabbed his bag and walked out of the room. He saw Dio and greeted him, "G' morning." Dio looked at him and muttered a "Yeah…"

Together, they walked to the cafeteria.

"_**I heard that Dio is his roommate. Could you believe that?"**_ Jin looked at Dio who was walking casually with his hands on his pockets.

"_**Seriously? But he doesn't have a scratch on his cheek!"**_ Jin placed his hands on his pockets too and tilted his head. Dark clouds were hovering over and covering the sun. The wind sent chill down his spine. It was cold.

Jin thought that maybe it was going to rain and tried to hurry him and Dio. Dio sighed and slightly quickened his pace.

"Hmmm?" A droplet of water fell on Dio's nose. It trickled down his cheek and fell to the ground from his chin. _'Rain?' _More droplets of water fell down, and soon it was drizzling.

"Oh crap! Let's hurry or we'll get wet." Jin urged Dio. The canteen was just beside the dorms, so they easily avoided being soaked.

The door automatically opened to the side as they neared it.

"That was close." Jin muttered when they got in. His hair showed signs of water oozing down his red hair. "I wonder if the rain's going to get heavier." He said to himself as he looked out the glass. The rain didn't look like it'll get worse, but from the clouds, it might be bad.

"I'll see you later then." Jin waved his hand to Dio and walked over to find his two friends.

'_Rain…'_ Dio stared at the glass, the water seeped down through it, making the glass blurry. _'It was raining that time too...'_ He shook his head and walked to his usual place.

He found Lass and Luxus already eating. He sat down and ate too himself. _'It's from the past. I've no use remembering it.'_

Luxus and Lass looked at Dio. Ever since the new student came, Dio has been acting strangely. Both of them shared a look, but didn't ask Dio about it. They think that Dio need time for himself too.

Dio stared at the table blankly as he ate his food. The aroma that the food was giving could make anyone drool, unless you're used to it.

He narrowed his eyes unconsciously, remembering something. He lightly bit his lip, and proceeded to eat again.

Lass and Luxus occasionally observed Dio.

Lass looked out the glass wall, and felt something nostalgic as he observed the rain. He clenched his hold on his spoon for a second, and then ate again.

Luxus observed them carefully, and looked outside too. He sighed and went back to eating.

'_Now that I remember…'_ Luxus blinked and looked at both Lass and Dio again in the corner of his eye.

'_The rain… is where everything ended.'_

* * *

"It's really raining, isn't it?" Kyle sighed. He and Amy guided Jin to where the lockers were. It wasn't hard to find since it was close to the entrance.

"It can't be helped. It's rainy season after all." Amy closed her umbrella and shook it so that it will dry faster, letting droplets of water fall down to the ground.

Jin entered the combination in his locker and placed the books he didn't need until lunch. The locker was about the same size as them.

Jin yawned and ruffled his hair slightly.

"Not getting much sleep?" Kyle grinned at Jin, who looked at him confusingly.

"Not as much as a nerd like you." Jin smirked and walked to the classroom.

Kyle frowned at Jin's back, but followed him nonetheless.

Amy giggled at their remarks. _'They really haven't changed.'_ She smiled and followed them. She purposely let herself fall behind them so she could observe.

Jin and Kyle were talking about something, but Amy couldn't exactly tell what it was. She was clearly spacing out.

'_You… really don't remember me… do you Jin?'_ She looked at Jin who was busy arguing with Kyle. She stared at him longingly, trying so hard for her emotions to not burst out.

Amy sighed and softly shook her head. _'The days I've spent with you were the most memorable days for me. If your memories didn't disappear…'_

Soon, they entered their classroom. Not many students were there, only a few. The others must be still in the dorms. Slowly, they took their seats.

'_Would you have felt the same?'_

* * *

"Did you enjoy yesterday's party?" Lime asked everyone. Her eyes gleamed with joy, which made all the students think that something good happened.

Many students replied with a 'yes', some muttered a 'who cares?', while some didn't even bother to answer, one of them including Jin.

"Anyways, now that that's over," she clapped her hands and got everyone's attention, "it's time for that, right?" She winked and showed an innocent smile.

The students cheered and chattered, talking about the said 'event'.

Jin blinked, confused. He leaned to his side to get closer to Kyle and whispered, "What is she talking about?"

Kyle grinned and copied Jin. "She's talking about the 'Showdown'."

Kyle faced Amy in front of him. His face was a bit flushed, but it suddenly turned serious.

Amy was talking to her seatmate; a boy with black hair and obsidian eyes.

"What showdown?" Jin interrupted Kyle of whatever he was thinking.

Kyle blinked. He looked at Jin who stared at him with clear intent.

He gave a nervous laugh. "Sorry. I kinda'… spaced out."

Jin sighed and gave him a look that said 'Answer my question'.

Kyle smiled helplessly and answered, "It's a battle between the cliques, usually the popular, nerds, and rebels. There are many more cliques, but the school decided that it'd be those three. The groups are only in the middle school department. I don't know if the high-school or elementary has one, but it doesn't matter.

It's merely a battle for fun. The school decides what challenge it is. There will be rewards for the winning group. For example, the rebels could skip for one week but still have their attendance checked. The nerds could get free admission to the science lab for a week. And the popular ones could use the stage for a week to show-off and wear their own clothes during class hours.

It usually happens at the beginning of every semester, so it's really fun!" He finished with a huge grin on his face. He was really looking forward to it from his expression.

"Is that so?" Jin didn't look convinced at all. His face was solemn and cautious. Kyle grimaced inwardly, but kept on his grin.

Jin plastered on a fake and innocent smile. "What clique do you belong?" Jin leaned his cheek on his right hand, still smiling.

Kyle gulped. Jin's expression was really scary when he wants to know something. You can clearly tell it from his eyes.

'_I think Amy is rubbing off on him unconsciously.'_

"I don't belong in one." He said calmly. Kyle was good at lying, but not as good as Amy.

"I see." Jin said, clearly not believing him. "What about your friends? The ones you introduced to me yesterday." Jin persisted, clearly not giving up.

A bead of sweat trickled down Kyle's forehead. _'I can't fool Jin. Great, now he'll get mad.'_ He thought, giving up.

"Fine… you win this time." Kyle pouted, while Jin smirked triumphantly.

"Kyle, you're like the heir of the Cloude family. You guys are known as strategists, so can't you tell a better lie than that?"

"I can't help it. You know that I can't lie to you. Even if I could, you'll figure everything out." Kyle scowled. He really couldn't lie to him, especially with that smile. On second thought, he could lie to him, but… Kyle just has this feeling that lying to Jin won't do him any good – a very odd feeling. "Now that you know, will you take off that smile already? It's giving me the creeps."

Jin frowned, removing his intense smile and aura. He sighed and slightly glared at Kyle who was still sulking.

"I'm with the nerds and Amy is with the popular ones." He admitted, looking down to avert Jin's gaze.

"And why do you want to recruit me?" Jin continued, not giving up until Kyle answers his every question.

"You're really stubborn."

"I know, now stop changing the topic and speak."

"Fine, fine. I told you that there are challenges right? Well, it depends on the principal's mood of what they'll be. The challenges sometimes put a disadvantage to us. So, having a new member will… well help us a lot." Kyle scratched the back of his head and looked at Jin who had a bored look on his face. _'Is he mad?'_

Jin sighed. "And that's why you and Amy have been arguing yesterday?"

Kyle nodded, hoping that Jin wouldn't get angry. Jin has low-fuse…

His thoughts were replied with Jin leaning back on his chair with a smile.

"It's best that you give up, 'cause I'm not gonna join any cliques." Jin yawned. He covered his mouth so that he wouldn't be rude._ 'I feel really sleepy today.'_

I looked in front with bored eyes, thinking slightly about what Kyle said. _'I'm not really a popular type so that's a no… the nerds are… nerds… the rebels are – well, not that bad. Still, I don't have the time to be joining any cliques. I haven't even got a chance to train yesterday and the day before.'_ The second those words came out my mind, my eyes widened. _'I haven't been training for three days?! Three whole days?! That's it… no more slacking off.'_

"Anyways," Lime's voice caught the attention of the whole class, "the competition will start next Saturday. Just wait for tomorrow for further announcements." She finished with a business-like tone that didn't really go with her innocent face.

Ring. Ring. The class' attention drifted to the bell ringing, signaling that class was over.

"That ended fast." Lime muttered to herself and pouted, her eyes showing annoyance.

* * *

School ended at 4:00.

Jin and Amy were still in the classroom. They were assigned for cleaning duty by their oh-so-great teacher.

"This goes here… and this in there… and this one is…-" Amy mumbled as she fixed the tables and chairs to where they were supposed to be.

Jin was holding a mop. Apparently, during lunch, someone forgot to lock the windows. Basically, the rain poured down in their classroom. When Jin thought that everyone will help clean it up, the students decided to leave it to the two people assigned to clean the place and snickered.

'_Stupid rich brats.'_

**Amy's POV**

I held my forehead, trying to soothe the pain away.

At the time the window was open, I was in the room. The wind just suddenly gushed and before I knew it, I was soaked. I was glad that I kept extra clothes in my locker, or I would have been like that until school was over.

Not only that, my head was still aching from the hangover of yesterday's party. I wasn't into drinking, honestly. But Ella just poured down half of the contents of her glass in my throat. Before I knew it, I was drunk and moving on my own. I could remember dancing with someone too… Thankfully, I don't know how but the drunkenness suddenly disappeared at the end of the party.

Although the aftereffects were really troublesome when I woke up.

I sighed and continued fixing the chairs.

I looked at Jin desperately cleaning the ground. He moved the mop here and there, making sure that everything would be cleaned.

'_He's always trying so hard…'_

I moved the chairs and placed them back on their usual places. The students really don't care whether someone cleans this or not, do they?

I walked to the other side, picking up crumpled papers with me to the garbage bin. There was a lot of trash in here.

'_I can't believe I'm doing this.'_ Usually, I denied cleaning. But when I learned that Jin will be with me, my mouth just blurted out 'Okay.'

I walked to another side and grabbed the broom. I swept the trash and placed them in the dust pan.

Just when I was going to throw them away, a pain jolted in my head. I lost my balance and quickly held the table for support.

The pain was unbearable. It kept pouncing on me and wouldn't go away.

I looked at Jin and smiled weakly, glad that he didn't notice me.

Jin always worried about me when we were kids. He would always scold me for playing in the rain or running recklessly. I was glad that he would worry about me to that extent, but sometimes he would be really overprotective. He acted like my big brother, and that was fine by me.

That was… until that happened.

The pain kept on growing, to the point where I couldn't keep standing anymore. _'Did I catch a cold?'_

I sat on one of the chairs and tried to keep it away. I massaged my temples, hoping it would go.

"What's wrong, Amy?" I heard a voice ask me. Jin was standing over me with a solemn expression. He looked really worried.

I forced myself to smile, hoping he would buy it. "I'm fine, just a little tired." I reasoned.

Jin didn't look convinced. His eyes looked at me suspiciously. I could drown in those red eyes of his forever, and I would do anything for it.

He sighed and said, "Just tell me if something happens." With that, he proceeded to mop again. This time, faster. He must be really worried about me, or maybe he just wants to train. With his muscle-brain, anything is possible.

I looked at him, disappointed with myself. I forced myself to stand. I didn't want him to worry about me anymore. I want to show him that I'm strong.

I know that it would be useless, since he forgot everything. But, I don't want him to worry anymore.

I stood up and threw the garbage. The pain was still lingering in my head, but I paid no heed to it.

Thunder roared outside. I was always scared of the thunder. So, I covered my ears to get rid of the sound.

When I looked at the windows, a straight line of light went down, followed by another roar. I felt really scared so I averted my gaze from it.

The rain reminded me of that 'incident'. The incident where everything ended.

The rain poured on and it kept getting worse. For some reason, the more the rain gets heavier, the more the pain in my head grows. I couldn't hold it in any longer, so I stumbled down and hit a chair.

That was all I remember before the whole world became blank.


	9. My Thoughts

DISCLAIMER:** I DON'T OWN GRAND CHASE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. The only ones I own are Kyle, Mica, Elaine, Ella, and Roald.**

* * *

Chapter 9: My Thoughts

**I moaned painfully, the pain in my head wouldn't let up. I had caught a cold, and my parents were working, so no one will be here to relieve me.**

**I was lying in my bed. The pink blankets that I loved dearly were on top of me. I gripped it tightly, hoping that the pain would go away. **

"**It hurts…" I mumbled to myself, trying to ease the agony. It hurts so much that I honestly felt like it would tear my head apart.**

"**Don't worry." A soft voice told me. His voice was warm and gentle, so gentle that I could melt by his kind and tender words.**

"**Uhhh…" I looked over to my side to see Jin, my best friend having a concerned look on his innocent face. He grabbed a chair and moved it the side of my bed. He sat on it and looked at me, deeply worried.**

"**You'll be fine, I promise. You already took the medicine. It would be just a matter of time before you'll feel better." His voice soothed me. In all honesty, it slightly made the pain go away.**

"**But it still hurts…" I moaned, completely not believing his words, no matter how warm it is.**

"**Then I'll stay with you until it goes away. So sleep, okay?" He said to me with a smile. His smile was slightly forced, and I could tell that he was clearly worried about me. **

**He placed his hand over my forehead and soothed it. It made me feel happy, the gesture felt kind and loving.**

"**But you'll go away when I fall asleep…" I argued, not wanting him to go away. I didn't want this warm feeling he was giving me to leave.**

"**Then, how about this?" He placed his hand over mine and squeezed it, telling me that it'll be fine.**

"**I'll be with you until you wake up." He smiled to me, and I felt like believing him.**

"**Promise?" I muzzily asked, my eyelids drooping from wanting to sleep.**

"**Promise." He squeezed my hand again, a gesture so comforting even for me.**

**I slowly nodded and fell into a deep sleep. The pain slowly melted away, and I could still feel Jin's hand not leaving me.**

I opened my eyes, only to be faced with an unfamiliar ceiling. I looked around, and noticed that I wasn't in my room. I was in a bed. White blankets were sprawled all over my body.

There were other beds other than what I'm lying on.

There was also a nurse, one I recognize as 'Nurse Tammy', our school nurse. She wore her dark, red hair in a neat ponytail. Then and there, I noticed that I was in the infirmary.

'_A dream…?'_

"Are you awake?" Her voice was lady-like yet caring. It was pretty obvious that I was since if I wasn't I couldn't have answered.

I slowly nodded, noticing a slight pain lurking in my head.

She gave me a relieved smile and said, "You passed out."

I blinked. _'I passed out?'_

She nodded at my confusion. "If he wasn't here, your fever could have gotten worse. You should be more careful." She scolded me softly. I looked at her confusingly on who was the 'he' she was talking about.

Then, her eyes turned gentle again. "It's almost dinner. It's already 5:30 so you two should go back to your dorms." With that said, she left.

I stared at the door she used blankly.

The door opened again. Her head popped in, and she said with a nervous smile, "I'll borrow your umbrella okay? I'll be back soon." She really left this time. I could only smile a little of her actions.

'_I passed out…'_ I slowly repeated in my head, not believing it.

I held my forehead. I wasn't feverish, and the headache was gone. I sat up, being careful of my body since I passed out.

'_Huh?'_

I then heard soft breathing, one I wasn't aware of. I looked over to the side of the bed.

The image made me gasp.

A figure was there, sitting on a chair. His head was resting on his arms which were lying on the bed. I couldn't see his face since he slept face-down, but his hair was red.

I only knew one red-haired boy who would do this, Jin.

I stared at him in awe. I never realized that it was him Tammy was talking about.

I tried to move my hand to touch his hair, but I couldn't. Something was holding it back. I looked at it and nearly jumped, my eyes widening.

_His _hand was holding _mine_.

His hold was firm and gentle, as if he doesn't want to leave me. I stared at it in shock, and was reminded of my dream.

'_Why…?'_

I stared at him longingly, wanting him to look at me with those red eyes of his.

'_Why can't I just…'_

I could still hear his soft breathing, and I could see his back slightly move up and down. The scene was calming, and even I could melt away from his gestures. I said his name, hoping that he would just hear my feelings.

'_Why is it so hard to forget you?'_

Ever since that 'incident', I kept blaming myself over and over again. It was _my_ fault. _Everything_ was my fault. The reason he became like this was _my_ fault. My fault… everything… was my fault… mine…

I clenched my hand hard. I didn't want to feel like this again. Why is he being so nice to me? Even after all that happened? Why? Why? Why?

'_If only these feelings would just go away…'_

I heard a light groan coming from him, a sound that indicates one has woken up.

He lifted his head and glanced around before his eyes landed on me. He smiled softly and said, "You're awake," as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

He didn't remove his hand from mine, which I assumed that he didn't even notice. "You idiot." He flicked my forehead, just strong enough to knock some sense into me.

"Wha…?" I caressed it gently with my hand and stared at him wide-eyed, my eyes saying 'What was that for?'

"It's for lying to me." His face had a serious expression on that was clearly scolding me.

"You should have said that you have a fever. You're so stubborn sometimes." He sighed, which was then replaced by a helpless smile.

He reached for my head and did something I didn't expect. He stroked my head, gently patting my hair.

He smiled again, a genuine smile telling me 'I'm glad you're okay.'

I stared at him dumbfounded, not knowing what to say.

The gesture was comforting. In fact, very comforting that I wanted to just lie back down and sleep again.

I held myself back from blushing, but clearly failed when he anxiously said, "Are you alright?" and touched my forehead to see if I was okay.

I frantically nodded my head like a child, hoping that he would stop the gestures already because I feel like my heart wouldn't take it anymore.

He gave me a suspicious stare but nodded anyway.

"It's already dinner time. Let's go." He stood up and proceeded to walk to the door, but something made him stop. He looked down at our hands entwined with each other. It took him for a moment to realize that we're holding hands, and that _he_ was the one who was doing the holding.

He abruptly took his hand and blushed, though he hid it carefully. It made me feel a little sad, since the warmness left my body just from that, though I didn't show it.

"Um… sorry about that… I didn't… Let's just go." Running out of excuses, he walked to the door.

I followed him, giggling.

We walked through the hallways lit by the luminous light. I honestly think that only a few people were here now, including me and him.

'_If by any chance, you remembered…'_

I gazed at his back. He walked steady but fast, so I needed to quicken my pace.

'_I wonder how will you react?'_

* * *

"Great." Jin said sarcastically, while looking at the bin that held the umbrellas, or umbrella.

There was only one umbrella left. Not only that, the umbrella is perfectly okay for one person only. It can hold two, but they would have to stay close to each other, very close, like a couple. The umbrella here is a bit smaller than normal ones.

I giggled softly, amused by Jin's reactions. _'I would never get tired of you…'_

Jin turned to my direction and slightly narrowed his eyes at me, which I found really entertaining and cute. Of course, I wouldn't say that to him directly.

He sighed and scratched his head. "Now what?" He looked like a child about to finish eating his lollipop he loved the most, a sad thing.

"Dinner starts at 6, we barely have 10 minutes and it takes at least 5-10 minutes to reach the dorms." He flopped down the ground, mumbling something about being hungry.

I giggled again, this time quietly so he couldn't hear. _'He always loves the food.'_

"Why don't we do this?" I caught his attention, wanting to suggest something. He nodded, telling me to go on. "Why don't you go ahead first, and I'll wait for Nurse Tammy? That way you'll-"

"No." Before I could even finish, he cut me off. "I'm not leaving you alone. Besides, you're a girl, you can't stay here with no one with you." He rested his chin on his hands pressed together and turned away, a bit angry at what I just said.

"It's not curfew time yet. And Tammy will come soon, so if you're worried about me scared being alone, then-"

"I said no, Amy. And that's not the point." Cutting me off again, he stood up and leaned on the wall, his folded his arms and closed his eyes, silently telling me that he doesn't want to hear my suggestion anymore.

I puffed out my cheeks. I wanted to argue some more and ask him what he meant by 'that's not the point', but he already shut me off.

* * *

We waited silently. The rain never stopped, only it got even worse than before. Tammy was really taking a long time. I looked at my wristwatch to see that 3 minutes have passed, meaning we have barely 7 minutes.

I sighed. _'If only Jin wasn't stubborn…'_ Then again, I'm stubborn too myself.

"I can't take this." Jin muttered with his eyes having an annoyed glint. He was always impatient, so I could understand him.

He gestured his hand for me to come close to him. I nodded and did as he told.

He took the umbrella and opened it. I released a sigh of relief that he was finally going to dinner without me.

"Come on." He looked at me. I stared at him, confused at what he meant.

"I said, come on. Let's go." He repeated, only this time he was more annoyed.

"How?" That question only made him more annoyed. He stared at me for a moment, before doing something I didn't expect.

He _held_ my hand and dragged me and himself out in the rain, the umbrella covering us.

"J-Jin?" I couldn't take it so I stuttered. My heart was beating so fast. And moreover, I was probably blushing by now.

"It's better this way." He said, not taking his hand off mine, which made me blush even more.

* * *

We walked further and further until I couldn't make out the building anymore even though it was large, so I assumed that we were getting close.

My heart kept on pounding fast and hard that I even thought he might hear or feel it by now. I glanced out our hands interlinked together. Even in this cold rain, his hand was so warm.

I sneaked a peek at his face, curious about what expression he has on right now. I blinked, confused by his face. His face was a little red, his cheeks to be precise.

'_Did he catch a cold?'_ I was about to ask him about it when I saw something on his shoulder. His shoulder was wet, I could tell. Not only that, it was being penetrated by the rain.

I looked at the umbrella and noticed it was slightly bent over to my side. I felt guilty that he was doing this for me.

As gently as I could, I slightly pushed over the umbrella to his side. He looked at me and frowned, noticing that my shoulder was now getting wet thanks to that. I didn't mind though, I didn't want him to catch a cold.

'_That must be why his face was red…'_

Jin was frowning more at me, but I really didn't mind. I want to do at least this for him. After all the things he's done for me, this was a small price to pay.

He looked straight ahead and I assumed that he accepted what I just did, which made me smile.

That's what I thought, anyway.

He sighed like something troublesome has happened again. He looked at me and sighed again, "You really are an idiot, aren't you?"

I blinked. _'What does he mean?'_

Before I knew it, Jin took of his hands from mine. Of course, that made me sad, very sad since he did it sharply. Seconds later, my heart changed from pounding due to happiness into disappointment and regret.

'_Is he angry?'_

Something suddenly pulled me close his chest, and I could really just scream by now from the embarrassment. I tried to move away, but something wouldn't let me.

I looked over my shoulder at what that something was, and I inwardly gasped. A hand was holding it. Moreover, Jin's hand was holding my shoulder. _His_ arm was over my shoulder. He was holding me like we're a _couple_.

My mouth opened to say something, anything, but I couldn't think of any words, so I closed it again.

I looked over at Jin who had a faint blush on his cheeks. "It's… better this way." That explanation made my heart flutter in happiness and embarrassment at the same time. And I couldn't help but smile, a blissful smile.

We continued walking, and before long, we could make out the cafeteria along with the dorms.

"Finally…" Jin sighed, seeing it too.

I couldn't help but feel a little sad since our little trip was barely a few minutes. _'Oh well, goes to show that reality is cruel.'_

We entered the canteen, and before long, he took his arm off of me. I pouted, not wanting him to do that, but I can't tell that to him could I?

* * *

"Now then, care to tell me what happened?" Kyle demanded. The second we entered, he immediately dragged us to a table where three trays of food were settled.

I sat beside Jin, which I don't know why, but Kyle glared at Jin more.

Jin proceeded to eat after praying silently, though Kyle stopped him before he could.

"Jin, care to answer my question?" Kyle smiled at Jin. But his eyes aren't really smiling at all…

"I told you Kyle, Amy fainted and I took her to the infirmary, she woke up at 5:30 or so and after that, we walked. That's it, nothing happened." Jin finished with a cranky attitude. He really looks hungry…

"Then, care to explain to me why you two we're holding each other like a couple?! Especially you, Jin!" He pointed his finger at Jin accusingly.

Not only that, the second those words came out of his mouth, the whole room felt silent. I gulped. _'This can't be what I'm thinking…'_

I glanced at everyone from the corner of my eyes, and surely enough, most of the students were looking. Scratch that, _everyone_ was looking, staring to be more specific. _'This is not happening.'_

"That's…" Jin looked at me with pleading eyes, begging me to say something. It didn't look like he and Kyle noticed the stares.

I felt sorry for him, so I immediately said the first thing that came to my mind. "There… was a… bug! That's it! There was a bug on my shoulder so he just merely shooed it away!" I finished with a nervous giggle.

'_That was really stupid…'_ was the first thing that came into my mind.

Jin's eyebrows twitched, so did Kyle's. I looked at him, hoping he would buy it. Jin's eyes had a flicker of regret and shame at the same time.

'_Was it really that bad?'_

"A bug…" Kyle murmured, to which I replied with an agitated nod.

"Ha… ha… Ha ha ha!" Kyle laughed as if something lame has just crossed his path.

"A bug… it was merely a bug… a stupid bug…" Kyle kept whispering to himself, to which Jin face-palmed.

Kyle plastered a smile on his face, and I actually thought that he believed me until…

"Jin, you must really hate bugs, don't you?" Kyle suddenly said out of nowhere. Jin cocked his eyebrows at him, wanting an explanation.

"Because the second you killed it, you were smiling weren't you?" Jin froze, unable to keep up.

Kyle was still smiling, so I thought that what I said was a good reason…

"And Amy…" He looked at me, his eyes scanning mine in search of truth. "You really like bugs don't you? Because you didn't even bother to get it yourself, not only that, how did you even know it was a bug? You didn't even look at it." My mouth opened to say something, but I shut it quickly since it might not be of any help or I might end up regretting it again.

'_Curse Kyle and his brain…!'_

"Hmmm… but you could hate them too since the second he killed it you were smiling." He rolled his eyes upward and placed his hand underneath his chin as if to think something.

I could feel myself shaking. If Kyle found out, then… _'Wait. Why do I need to hide it anyway? It's not like we did anything wrong, right? We weren't a couple and if we could just explain it to Kyle, then everything would be fine! …or I hope so.'_ I inhaled a gulp of air to calm myself and try to explain.

"Oh I forgot, you said he just 'shooed it away', right? Then why is Jin's hand on top of your shoulder? His hand should be gesturing it to go away… care to explain?" His expression turned into a scowl, which means he was dead serious this time.

I could literally see Jin sweat beside me, and I could only giggle. Both of them looked at me questionably. _'Was that too loud?'_

I looked at Jin and gave him an 'it would be okay' smile. He looked at me confusingly, before his eyes slowly widened and gave me a look that said 'don't continue what you intend to do'.

I shrugged and ignored his plea. I smiled at Kyle and thought of a good explanation.

"Okay, let me explain." I gathered their attention to me. Kyle frowned at me, but I ignored it.

"Does that mean you're admitting it?" Kyle's expression had a mix of anger, sadness, and regret. I wonder why?

I nodded to him with a serious expression. He suddenly averted his face down and folded his arms. "Fine, tell me."

"I admit that we were… well holding each other like a couple, but it's not like that." Kyle's mouth opened to say something, but he didn't, so I went on. "We were just doing that so we wouldn't get wet." Kyle suddenly looked at me with a 'what do you mean' look and an 'I'm not stupid' twitch. "Like I-"

"Why are you two making such a big deal out of this?" I was cut off by Jin who sighed and had a look that says he was hungry. I shushed him by putting a finger over my lips and continued.

"Okay, as I was saying,"

* * *

"So that's it? You two weren't a… 'thing'?" Kyle's expression turned happy the second after I finished with my so-called explanation.

I nodded while Jin just yawned.

Kyle averted his eyes again and I saw him exhale a huge gulp of air.

"Well, all right then. You should have just told me from the beginning." Kyle began to eat his food. I noticed Jin glare at him.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you!" Jin's eye twitched in accordance. He, too, began to eat in a hasty way. _'He must have really been hungry.'_

I grabbed my spoon and fork and ate the food. The food was delicious as its taste rolled over my tongue.

I glanced at Jin at the corner of my eye. He was eating grumpily, and fast too. I suppressed a giggle at him.

…

…

…

"Oh yeah, Kyle, I need to ask you something." Jin immediately broke the silence while still chewing on his food.

I glared at him in the distance. _'He should really stop talking when he still has food on his mouth!'_

Kyle gulped and answered, "Yeah?"

Jin gulped too and placed his spoon and fork down for a moment. "You have any idea why our clothes always get washed every day?" Soon after he said that, he grabbed a spoonful of meat.

Kyle looked at him weirdly and so did I. _'What does he mean?'_

"Someone washes your clothes for you? Wow Jin, that's something I never expected coming from you." Kyle said in an amazed voice, and lightly laughed soon after.

"What are you talking about, Jinny?" I ignored Kyle and asked Jin myself. Jin frowned; probably annoyed by the nickname I gave him.

"Well, let's just say that every time I put clothes in the basket in the bathroom, the next day or when I'm gone, they just mysteriously _disappear_ and re-appear at my closet, cleaned and even ironed, soon after." Jin yawned and placed his hands behind his head in a relaxed state.

"Why are you guys looking at me like that?" Jin said after seeing our disbelieved faces.

Kyle was the first to speak, "Woah… like- I mean wow…! Someone washes your clothes for you? …Awesome." After slightly stuttering, he grinned like usual.

Jin looked confused, and his eyes were slightly- when I mean slightly I definitely mean slightly- narrowed. I smiled.

"Jin, does your room have maids? I think there were rooms that have maids in other buildings… although I've never heard of anyone having that kind of room in middle school."

Kyle interrupted. "If his room had maids, then he would have seen them by now, and he didn't have to ask that if he knew. It's common logic." Kyle covered his mouth with a handkerchief, unable to stifle his yawn.

I glared at Kyle for the rude comment. I know that it was common logic- or so he said. But, he didn't have to point it out like that. _'Sheesh.'_ I puffed out my cheeks slightly and pouted.

Jin looked at me in amusement before chuckling. I wanted to ask him why he laughed, but before I could, hands were suddenly over my cheeks and the air that was in my mouth was whooshed away.

I blinked, before realizing that it was Jin that did that to me. _'Oh God.'_ I could only hope that no one was looking, because that will be really embarrassing…!

…

…

…

Wait a minute! Why am I worrying if someone looks at us or not? I'm supposed to be worrying at our position right now!

I tried not to blush, since his hands were still cupping my cheeks. Oh my, it's too hard not to touch it. His eyes were also looking at me. Those red eyes…

"Oh, I get it!" We were suddenly distracted by Kyle's booming voice. From his tone, maybe he figured out the answer for Jin's question. No, _of course_ he figured it out. He's Kyle for goodness sake. He practically answers everything I ask him in a professional manner.

Jin slowly retrieved his hands and turned to look at Kyle, assuming an answer but at the same time, he had another expression. Hmmm… what is it? Doubt, I think? He doubts Kyle? What…?

Deep inside, I tried to hide the sad feeling of Jin removing his hands…

"That must mean…" Kyle trailed off. Maybe he was contemplating on his answer. Oh, just tell us the answer and stop making us nervous or something!

"…that there are ghosts in your room! And maybe they're the ghosts of 'The Maid'! You know? That horror movie? That was hilarious!" As usual, Kyle gives a very professional ans-

'_What?!'_

"What?!" I blurted out my thoughts that seemed to come out of my mouth. Wait a minute…

'_I didn't say that.'_

I looked beyond Kyle's shoulders and I could see a very familiar red-headed girl. She had matching ruby eyes and sparkly white teeth. Her hair was tied into a messy ponytail, with some of her bangs covering her forehead. Her name is Elesis.

Almost all the people in the room looked at the newly-gathered attention. When I say almost, I meant the rebels weren't looking, okay?

"What do you mean that sick excuse of a woman is coming? You can't be serious!" She didn't mind the attention at all, or maybe she just didn't notice it.

The girl in front of her was Lire. She had beautiful blonde hair in which some part of it was tied into a neat ponytail. She had the gentlest, emerald eyes.

Lire was gesturing Elesis to come down. Elesis hesitated, but obliged soon after. They talked in mere hushes and whispers, so we couldn't hear them anymore. But… you see… this school has a… problem regarding gossip so… never mind.

My attention drifted back to Kyle. I couldn't believe he would actually say something as stupid as that! And seriously, 'The Maid'? Can he be more serious? He even said that it might be ghosts, and I don't like ghosts! It's creepy.

"A-Amy… you're starting to get on me…" I was brought back to earth by his _slightly_ terrified voice. Before I knew it, I noticed that now, I was glaring at him. _'It's because he's stupid of saying something like that! It serves him right!'_ I inwardly pouted. I honestly felt like an idiot.

I could hear Jin sigh from beside me. "Kyle…"

The said person looked up at him peculiarly. "Jin…?" The both of them just… stared at each other. Both their eyes held unreadable emotions, which was very rare. I looked at Jin, then at Kyle, then at Jin, and Kyle again. Are they communicating telepathically or what? Is this how boys talk to each other? I thought they release their emotions through fighting…

The both of them suddenly broke contact and sighed in perfect sync. Did I miss something? Won't anyone care to fill me in? Or is it something I shouldn't know? Or maybe they didn't understand each other after all.

Jin yawned casually. Jin looks like he's been tired recently. Is something happening to him?

"Guys, I really need to sleep. I've been tired recently these days…" Jin slowly stood up and draped his bag on his right shoulder.

"What? Jin, it's barely seven and you're already tired. Is there something you're not telling us?"

* * *

"Is there something you're not telling us?" The second those words came out of Kyle's mouth, the image of the dream I got from my house' rooftop came back. I only remember a few moments of that dream. The images were a blur too, so I couldn't make out the girl that my so-called self met. I can't even remember the name of the girl who bullied her. I also remembered the dream I got when I talked to my… child self.

"Jin?" Amy's voice brought me back to my senses. Her eyes looked worried at my _odd_ behavior. I smiled at her, but I didn't know what smile I showed her that made her eyes get more concerned.

I sighed and slightly messed up my hair. "Guys, I'm fine. I don't really know why, but I'm just- really worn-out these days. I think I'm lacking exercise. So… see ya' tomorrow." Without waiting for their reply, I anxiously bolted out of the room. For some reason, I couldn't tell them about those dreams…

* * *

Kyle and Amy watched Jin hurriedly get out of the large cafeteria. Amy still held a worried look, but Kyle's eyes looked like he was suspecting something.

Amy turned to Kyle and glared at him, though this time, it didn't even make the boy blink an eyelash. "What was with that, Kyle?"

Said boy looked innocently at her, "What about?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Cloude. You know that I know you're faking."

He dropped his act and his eyes reverted back to the cold feeling that Amy had to get used to. "I can't help it. You know that we can't let him remember." His voice, which was full of happiness before, turned out to be really petrifying and emotionless.

"Is that why you've been faking your attitude all this time? Will Jin like that?"

"Then what do you suggest I do? Show him this attitude? Tsk. And I wasn't even faking it…" Kyle mumbled the last sentence so Amy couldn't hear it. "What about you, then? Weren't you faking?"

Amy's eyes widened. "I was not! I was just…"

"Doing what's best for him? Jin won't remember… he _can't_ remember. If he does, then it's the end of this dream."

Amy averted her eyes down, not wanting Kyle to see her face. "I know… but I can't help but hope that…"

"That he won't hate us? You know that's impossible. He practically almost _killed_ them when he knew." Kyle hissed under his breath. Remembering Jin do that without him being able to help was intoxicating.

Amy's shoulder sagged and couldn't help but accept that Kyle was right. She knew that Jin will hate them for doing _that_. They could try to explain to him that it was for his own good but… can they really? Will he even believe them? This was their last hope of getting closer to Jin now that he lost his memories but… what good would it actually do?

"But Jin… we already hurt him too much… we should at least do something for him."

"Do what? Tell him the truth? Do you honestly think we can do something to help him? Face the facts Amy, you know we can't. No matter what we do, the second Jin's memories come back, we're done for." Kyle finished without a care in the world. He had a point there though. _'We can't do anything, Amy… You know we can't… But, the only one who can actually understand me is Jin. He is the only one I actually showed my true colors. I can't revert back to my old self even with Amy around. Tsk… that's why it hurts this much. It's just too f***ing unfair.'_ Kyle thought deep inside. He really wanted to at least tell Jin the truth, but it was too much of a risk. He would know eventually, but now is not the right time.

"Do you… do you think we can do this?" Amy boomed her terrified voice into Kyle's ears. He felt a bit somber at her anxious voice; nevertheless he didn't show it.

"Probably." For the first time in his life, Kyle actually didn't know what to do.

* * *

I was already in the dorm. I walked around till I reached my room. That's when I noticed some guys I didn't knew about: The first one was a man with a long mustache and glasses and… were those horns on his forehead? He was wearing some kind of formal attire. He had a towel swathed in his arms. From the looks of it, he's a butler. The second one was a kid; he was wearing some kind of sleeping hat or something. He was standing alongside the tall man.

I felt curios and looked at the room number of the door they were facing. When I noticed it, I did a double-take. _'207…'_ Are they waiting for someone? As I passed them, I felt lost because I don't remember my room being 208 or 209.

'_Wait a minute… isn't my room 207?'_ I glanced back at the two figures by the door. _'They can't be waiting for me, right? So… they must be waiting for…'_ The thought made me cringe a little, _'…Dio.'_

I slowly walked back to my room. I raised my guard up and cautiously approached it. Their gesture surprised me, though.

"Good evening, monsieur Jin." The man who looked like a butler even bowed at my sight. Having someone greet me like this made me feel comfortable yet not at the same time. How did he even know my name?

"Uhh… good evening too." I copied his movement and bowed too.

The said butler whispered something to the little boy and even smacked him in the head, and it wasn't lightly either…

"Good mor- I mean good evening Ji- I mean monsieur." He stuttered to the maximum level and when he bowed, his head almost touched the freaking floor. _'What is with this kid?'_

As I observed them, I noticed something familiar. _'What the…'_ I looked at their purple skin; it was the same color as Dio. _'Purple skin…? Are they relatives of Dio or what?'_

Just then, the door opened to reveal an annoyed Dio. "Al? What are you doing here? I thought you went out to look for 'it'?" He noticed me too, and his eyes narrowed slightly. "And what are you doing here, mortal?" What's with this guy calling me mortal and what-not?

"Technically, this is my room if I still remember." I told him as a matter-of-factly. He shrugged and went back to sit on the couch and watch some program. I took this as a signal to enter my own room.

"Al, may I ask why you haven't been washing my clothes recently?" Even though he was talking to whoever 'Al' was, he was glaring at me. _'What the h*ll did I do?'_

"What do you mean, master? I have been washing thy clothes since your first day, sire." 'Al' asked politely, and it looked like he really didn't know what Dio was talking about.

Dio raised one of his eyebrows and said with arrogance, "And which room was it?"

"The room on the right, master." He gestured his head to look at the said room.

Dio raised his eyes accusingly. "Then may ask again why you haven't been washing my clothes?"

I stopped and tried to put all the pieces together. The disappearance of my clothes, the newly-washed uniform, Dio's question… _'This guy has been washing my clothes all this time?'_ But then, something came up. _'But, wasn't he looking for something as Dio was surprised by his appearance? And he knew that Dio's room was the one on the right, so…'_ There can only be one possibility.

I glanced at the kid from the corner of my eye. _'The kid was washing my clothes, all this time?'_ I tried not to laugh. I mean seriously, my clothes, being washed by a little child when he's supposed to be washing Dio's? What the h*ll, it's too hilarious!

Dio looked like he figured it out, too. He sent the kid a terrifying death glare that made the child cower in fear and hide behind the butler.

I couldn't help but smirk a little, seeing Dio annoyed was a bit funny.

The butler looked at the kid hiding behind him and sighed, and then he bonked the child's head like he did last time.

The kid held his head and kept whining at the pain. I slightly felt sorry for him; I know he didn't mean that.

"How many times have I told you that Master's room is on the right? It looks like we have some lessons to teach for the night." He grabbed the kid effortlessly and placed him under his arms like luggage.

"Well then, excuse us, Master" After he addressed Dio and gave me a polite smile, he closed the door and left.

I stood there awkwardly and contemplated whether I should talk to Dio or just barge in my room. But I didn't need to do that since Dio decided for me…

"Jin, was it? I assume you do know about the three cliques? Well then," He stood up and neared me, giving me the most terrifying smirk, "care to join us?"

* * *

I know this chapter is OOC again but… I'm really a failure as a writer aren't I? The happenings were happening slow and fast at the same time! They even easily forget it… But I did my best though, so for now I hope this satisfies you.

Thank you for reading!

_-LoveBuildsHate_


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